Never Better
by citroensandblueteacups
Summary: Riley and Gabriel are called in for an early mission one morning. They go undercover, but are having a hard time completing the assignment with all of the distractions surrounding them. After an incident occurs, Lillian forces the partners to isolate themselves in a log cabin deep in the woods, alone together. Riley x Gabriel. Chapter 11 up soon.
1. Chapter 1 - Distractions

A/N: This may be a little OOC, but I really ship Riliel (Riley x Gabriel) already. I hope you guys appreciate this little story, and sorry if it's not the best. This show has quite a lack of fanfics, which is I guess due to it only being a couple episodes in – which also might contribute to me not characterizing these guys perfectly. (*And I'm avoiding writing Gabriel's wife into the plot. We're going to assume he's well over her for this story.*) But, I'm happy with the result. Review if you want! I beg you not to be too harsh. :D It's a one-shot for now, but I might continue it if you like it enough. Tell me your thoughts. Thank you – I appreciate every read.

Rated T for a little bit of romance.

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned this show. Or at least its characters. *throws immature fit*

Chapter One - Distractions

Gabriel was starting to regret their close quarters.

Riley had just knocked on his door at 6:30 in the morning and was presently standing in front of him, looking expectant.

"Well Gabriel?" she asked. "C'mon, I know I didn't wake you up, so don't you dare pretend you're tired." She pursed her lips and raised her eyebrows, hands on hips.

She had asked him to join her on a "morning adventure." Gabriel knew she loved to get up early for her exercise, but ever since an incident at work, she'd been trying to make it up to him. A recent mission had gone badly and had resulted in Gabriel nearly getting kidnapped when Riley wasn't looking. She knew it was her fault, since it was her job to take care of him and make sure nothing bad happed to him. As her protector, she didn't think the mission should've gone down as it did. Gabriel guessed she was still feeling a bit sorry. Riley had been trying hard to make sure he was okay, even if it meant she had to spend even more time with him.

Not that he didn't enjoy it, but he was hoping for some peace after three days of her apologetic attitude. Where was the Riley that loved to mess with him? He wasn't used to her being so nice. He needed his partner back.

"Riley, you know I'm not mad at you, right? I mean I was a little shaken after the mission, but I've handled situations like that millions of times before." He suspected Lillian had come down extra hard on her, and he didn't want to make it worse by encouraging this demur behavior. She needed to know they were good.

Riley had been looking away so he tapped her arm. It was as if she were coming out of a momentary trance when she put a small smile on her face and finally met his eyes. "Okay. I understand," Riley nodded. She searched his eyes just to make sure and found he must have been speaking the truth. She seemed to relax and he saw her shoulders loosen up a bit. They didn't usually talk about their feelings with one another, but both of them felt like maybe they were starting to get somewhere.

She realized then that neither of them had looked away for several moments now, so she added, "But that's not why I was asking you to join me." _It was a half-truth_, she thought to herself, toying with the edge of her jacket.

But Gabriel caught her tell. "Right," he teased, "Because you're always so eager to spend your mornings with me any other day."

Riley opened her mouth to shoot back a defensive retort, but closed it again once she saw him grinning smugly. She fought back a returning grin. "I swear I'm not pitying you." Her hands flew back to her hips, ready to ease into their regular teasing banter.

"Sure, of course." That damn smirk wouldn't disappear. It stayed right on his face, between those charming dimples, making him look bright as ever in this early morning. She almost did feel bad about the early hour, noticing he'd not yet had time to shave the stubble from his jaw. With a five o'clock shadow on his chiseled features, he at least managed to pull off a more rugged look rather than a homeless one.

"Oh shut it." She answered just a little late. Not that she was having trouble concentrating. Definitely not.

He just laughed and ushered her into his apartment. "Alright, I'll go. Just let me get changed." The way she had been blatantly staring at Gabriel had caught him off guard, but it was ever so intriguing, and dare he say _hot_. Then it occurred to him that maybe something was wrong with his face – maybe she was staring at the drool he'd felt on his face earlier, or the way his hair was messy, looking like he'd just rolled out of bed (which was almost true; he'd been watching TV in his bedroom before she'd arrived) – but one look in the mirror told him that it couldn't have been anything horrible.

_That sounded conceited,_ he thought to himself. But he was still a little self-conscious just like any other human being. It wasn't as if he cared about how he looked one way or another, so long as he looked, at the very least, decent in front of his partner. He didn't dwell on himself for much longer, and got distracted thinking about her. How was it even fair that she was looking like that at this early an hour? Did she just wake up looking that gorgeous? It was then that his mind derailed on that train of thought, however, because he started thinking about what she looked like rolling out of bed, or even still sleeping, and what it would be like to…_Okay, nope. I must be way too tired to be thinking about __**that**_, Gabriel concluded.

He returned to the kitchen where she was sitting at the island table. He started to wonder where they were going to run, and asked her as much. She turned her head and said, "Huh? Who said anything about jogging?"

He was standing perpendicular to her, leaning against the kitchen sink and realized she had been wearing a skirt under her jacket, not running shorts. Duh. "I just thought you did your usually morning jog around this time, I don't know." That earned him a questioning look.

"What, do you watch the street camera footage around the block?" She turned her body towards him on her stool, ready to move to give him a punch. He almost flinched. Almost.

"Hey, I like to make sure the building and its surrounding are secure. If I happen to catch you on the cameras, that's not my fault." _And maybe I like to make sure you return safely_, he kept to himself. And, okay, maybe he could appreciate her athletic form. But that was all.

He didn't move out of the way fast enough to avoid the slap he received. Riley was standing right in front of him now, glare a little less threatening. In fact, she almost looked like she was hiding a smile, but he might've been imagining that. She lowered her voice to say, "That better be all it is." Riley was standing so close he could smell her strawberry-scented shampoo. He really shouldn't have been enjoying this.

To distract himself, he asked where they actually were going. "We were assigned a minor mission this morning. Nelson said we should check out a warehouse in town whose owner is under suspicion for being an illegal arms dealer." She quirked her lips. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Her close proximity was doing strange things to him. By the time she'd finished talking, he noticed her tongue flick out to wet her lips, sliding smoothly across and giving him an ideas about how they'd feel under his. His fingers twitched at the thought. He really was trying to focus, but had a hard time doing that with the way she seemed to be looking right through him. He moved a few steps away to pour them some coffee and decided to ignore her question. "So what does this little 'adventure' entail us doing?"

As it turns out, she was similarly having a tough time focusing as well because she'd noticed his pupils were slowly dilating a minute ago. She tried to rewind what he'd said and quipped, "Maybe you should actually check your phone and find out from Nelson yourself."

"Alright, alright. I was charging it last night and hoping that Cyber Command wouldn't need our brave and valiant services until normal business hours," he returned, his voice practically dripping with sarcasm. She smiled at that and let him retrieve his phone.

"Ready when you are, agent." Gabriel said. He grabbed his nice jacket before he left. Nelson had mentioned that the agents would need to be dressed nicely and act like couple out for a stroll while surveilling the building in question. It sounded innocent enough. However, Gabriel couldn't help but think this sort of thing was going to wreak havoc with him, seeing as he was already having a hard time staying focused this morning.

- Outside the Warehouse-

Riley had parked down the street from the building. It was actually in a nicer district and she could see how their cover stories were a bit more believable in this setting. There was a nice park across the street, manicured, mini-gardens lined the sidewalks, and early risers jogging or walking in the morning sunlight. It washed over the two agents in the car, reaching in to warm them. It looked as though it was going to be a beautiful morning, seeing as the temperature was already seventy-five degrees. Exiting the car, Riley decided to shed her jacket.

She turned around as soon as it was in the car to find Gabriel staring again. Not only staring, but almost in a state of disbelief. "Are you okay?" she asked. His heated gaze on her was starting to make her blush and for some reason her breath was hitching.

"You know you might wasn't to make sure you don't swallow any flies." Gabriel closed his mouth then and looked up, almost sheepishly. The corners of her mouth kicked up in a smug grin.

"You um," he cleared his throat, "You look good. That's all. That red dress is really…" Riley couldn't hold back a small chuckle at the way he was acting – _so_ the opposite of his usual confident self. "I've never seen you in a dress, that's all." She took it as a good sign, because she knew what he meant by that. The dress was form-fitting and a little low-cut on top, and the skirt of it was mid-thigh and flowy - _He's never seen my legs_, she thought.

Gathering himself, Gabriel held out his arm for her to take. As they got closer to the warehouse, he seemed to be dropping her hand, but was sliding it down her arm to take her hand. She'd be lying if she said her goosebumps were from the wind. The soft feel of his fingers tracing down her wrist was an interesting sort of thrill. Her heart momentarily sped up and she had to remember that they were on a mission. They looked at each other at the same time and held their respective gazes. Her eyes accidently flickered down to her lips and he saw his tongue appear reflexively to moisten his lips. She'd never seen his eyes darken like they just had. She had to take a deep breath_. Focus. _

They were steadily approaching the building. All they had to do was get in, see if they could find any incriminating evidence, and get out. Simple.

"Gabriel," she hissed, "To _your_ right." He tensed and faced the man, ready to play it up as a lovesick puppy.

The man, short but menacing, stopped just before them. In a split second, Gabriel ran his facial recognition system to know everything possible about the man standing in front of them. Paco DeGuiero. Age thirty-eight. Several priors including attempted vehicular manslaughter and involvement in the selling of illegal substances. He didn't seem to be enduring his prison sentence accordingly, and Gabriel pulled up a file with the chip containing an APB for this man. _This man, who was currently shouting at them to move away in some Hispanic language that the chip recognized, was worth being put back in jail,_ Gabriel decided.

"Sorry, we only speak English," Gabriel lied, breaking out a charming smile. "We were just out to breakfast," he insisted. He let go of Riley's hand and grabbed her waist, pulling her tight up against his side. She wasn't ready for this quick action however, and her momentum carried her swinging right into his chest. She was practically two inches from his face and they were sharing the same air. She swallowed and stared at the small distance between them. When Gabriel spoke again, she thought he sounded a bit hoarse, saying to Paco, "It's our anniversary. We're just trying to have a nice walk, so can't you just let us by, please?" As he spoke, he tightened his grip on her waist and could feel the contours of their bodies pressing closer. He was caught off guard when he realized how perfectly they lined up with one another.

Paco seemed to sense how unnecessary his actions were, and stopped yelling at the couple trying to walk around the building and turned his back on them. Riley, who was inches from Gabriel's stubbled chin only a second ago, was now whirring through the air to grab Paco's arm, twist it at an unnatural angle behind his back, and use her other arm to crack down hard on his neck, rendering him unconscious instantly.

"Well that was unexpectedly ...hot." She turned back to him with an incredulous and flustered face. He quickly added, "The way you knocked him out, I mean. That was priceless." _Yeah, good cover_, she thought sarcastically.

"C'mon, I see an opening we can sneak into." She motioned for him to follow her to the side of the building where the basement doors rested. Riley picked the lock and opened the doors, looking down into the darkness. "You first."

He almost protested, but it wasn't like he was scared. Hell, he'd never been much afraid of the dark. It was just what could be waiting for them in the dark that he had a problem with. He took a deep breath and jumped down through the hole the doors had covered, hoping to land safely. Luckily, the floor was only a small drop away. "Come down, I'll catch you!" he yelled up to his partner.

"Here I come," she warned. She dropped and fell directly into his embrace, arms circled around his shoulders. Her dress was riding up where his hands had caught her. He still had a tight grip on her to keep her steady, warm hands on her upper thighs. Instead of letting go immediately, He let his hands glide upward for a quick moment, but she realized he was pulling her dress back down. He let his fingers trail down her soft skin as they went, making her shiver. Soon she felt his breath on her jaw. "You alright?"

Breathlessly, she answered, "Never better." As he pulled back, his stubble grazed her cheek. If his goal was to make her feel a little crazy under his touch, well then he was doing a great job.

Snapping back to reality when they heard voices, they wandered toward a very faint light.

What they found then was astonishing. The dark shapes that they were making their way around appeared to be crates. Using a flashlight, they could see one was broken. They looked inside to find a small stockpile of weapons. They were somewhat relieved to find that they had been successful in finding evidence, and _boy _was it good evidence, to prove the presence of an arms dealer. With the amount of boxes all around the room, it was easy to tell that it couldn't all be legal.

Riley searched for her partner's hand in the dark. "I just need to know where you are," she said when he coughed. "Let's get closer to hear what they're saying." The flashlight was turned off and their eyes were adjusting to the darkness.

By the time the voices finished their conversation, the agents knew they had practically a mountain of evidence. All they needed to do was leave the building unseen and report to HQ for back-up. As it turned out, the building was full of potential buyers at the moment (which was just wonderful news for the agency), so the partners were going to need to find their way out the same way they'd come in. By the sound of the dealers' talk on the next level up, they had noticed Paco had gone missing. Gabriel tapped into their cellphones and landlines and decided they needed to leave. Immediately. It was a good thing they'd thought to hide his body in one of the bushy gardens that lined the sidewalk.

Tugging each other's hands, they both ran to the light that the old basement door was providing and looked at each other. Gabriel smirked and said, "Let me give you a lift." At the eye roll he was sure he received along with the smack, he added, "I'll be a gentleman! Besides, we're not gonna last much longer if we keep stalling."

She huffed and warned, "You better be a gentlemen. I'll cut off your favorite appendage if you're anything_ less_ than gentlemanly." Somehow, it lacked her normal conviction. But, the voices downstairs were growing louder and the commotion allowed him to grab her by the waist and hoist her up towards the opening.

She palmed the outside of the door and grabbed a secure hold. Gabriel's hand slid off her waist to give her feet an extra push. Once she was out, she bent back over to give him a hand. Both a little out of breath, they closed the doors and raced to the other side of the street.

Attempting normalcy so as not to look suspicious, Riley grabbed his hand again and they slowed to a walk. No one had made it out of the building yet or found Paco handcuffed to a parking meter in the bushes. "Boy that was close," Gabriel laughed. His adrenaline was pumping through his veins.

"Too close." Riley was flushed from the same rush and she laughed along with him. He pulled her against his waist again, more softly this time. He had to admit he was feeling a different kind of thrill along with the excitement of their escape.

Slowing to a stop, Gabriel suddenly ducked his head in and was moving his lips closer to her face, enjoying the way she caught his look in his eye and gasped. He loved teasing her, though.

"They're watching." He stopped short and moved his lips to the side of her cheek dangerously close to the side of her mouth. Glancing up to her eyes, he motioned towards the building they'd just run from so she'd see a few frantic men looking around suspiciously. She stole a peek at the guardsmen out of the corner of eye, not daring to move further than a quick turn of the head. They were far enough away to be safe from the red-faced men whose veins were popping out of their foreheads. Riley turned her head back to him, noses brushing and an inch of air between them.

"We got 'em good and riled up. We better gather the troops before dealers get too scared and skip town," Gabriel whispered. Neither of them made to move. That is, excepting of course, when Gabriel leaned forward and touched his lips to a spot on the corner of her mouth.

The light touch sent a shock throughout her, and she let out an involuntary gasp. It didn't escape his notice though, so he let his soft lips linger just a little longer on her warm skin.

"Are they still looking?" he asked quietly against her cheek, and then he moved back an inch. Riley knew he was teasing her but couldn't bring herself to stop it. He was indeed charming and used it to his advantage. The smug bastard. At this moment, however, he wasn't looking smug; rather, he looked intense.

_Intense and heated_.

She went along with the act though, and glanced back to see the guardsmen starting to notice them. "Yeah," she answered. "I think we've been made. Let's hurry." But when she turned back to him, he had moved impossibly closer, near centimeters from her face.

She was taken off-guard by the way his mouth suddenly attached itself to hers. She momentarily lost her balance but was caught when his arms wrapped around her waist, settling on her lower back. She fell slowly into the kiss, arms wrapped around him as she steadied her mouth under his. He briefly reached up to tilt her jaw at an angle and moaned at the unexpectedly sweet taste of her lips. Both agents were startled to find how tender the feeling of each other's lips were. With every passing second and the longer the they held each other, it was feeling less and less like they were doing this to divert the arms dealers' attention. Gabriel sucked her lower lip between his for a moment, and in releasing it to meet her fully again, felt her smile against his mouth.

She teased him by slipping her tongue into his mouth, bringing a hand up to intertwine in his hair. That must have done something to him, because he only tightened his grip. While their tongues kept wrestling for dominance, he dragged his hand agonizingly up her spine, making her shudder with pleasure. Two could play at this game.

She felt herself being walked backwards and her back hit some surface. She could've cared less what it was as she was too absorbed in their fervent competition. All she knew was that her partner was kissing her senseless, not only to distract the guard, but to try and rattle her composure. He continued a tortuous trail of open-mouthed kisses down her jawline, probably testing to see how far Riley would go to compete with him. She was supposed to be paying attention to the men getting ever closer, not focusing on the way his mouth was making its way down her neck with a surprising tenderness. "Gabriel," she whispered hoarsely. That brought up his attention back to her darkened eyes.

Gabriel found himself at a total loss of words at the sound of her voice laced heavy with arousal. He couldn't stop himself from pressing one more kiss against her swollen lips. If she hadn't been blushing before, she surely was now. When she opened her eyes again, she found him breathing just as hard as she was. She looked over towards the retreating men, who must have decided the couple wasn't worth their time. "I…I think they're going away," she stuttered. She wiped her fingers over her still-tingling lips. A small part of her was desperately wishing he'd continue his thorough exploration of her mouth.

Neither really wanted to leave the embrace, but they knew time was of the essence on this case. Besides, an undercover kiss shouldn't have mattered that much. Nope. No real feelings involved there. Not at all.

They were just a little caught up in their own competition.

At least, that's what the agents both told themselves in order to feel like professionals again as they made their way to the car. Not that the self-given advice was working – far from it. For Riley, the further she tried to distract her own mind from the kiss, the more she thought about it. Gabriel (who was having the same problem) got in the black SUV and pushed away his train of thought into a file at the back of his mind. He couldn't _wait_ to relive that moment again later. And again. Just as he was about to berate himself for not staying on point _again_, his phone rang and he answered to hear Nelson on the other line.

The agents considered it a successful morning. They had infiltrated an arms dealer's base, discovered enough evidence to prosecute everyone in the building, and got an intense make-out session out of it. Gabriel alerted Nelson of their success (aside from the face-sucking) and they made their way back to work.

They were looking out the windows of the car, barely glancing at one another in a sort of uncomfortable silence. It looked like neither of them were about to discuss what happened. In an effort to ease the tension, Gabriel attempted small talk.

Just to be sure, he asked her once more, "You alright?"

And again she grinned, "Never better."

A/N: Okay so I hope you guys enjoyed it! I'm a new writer and I'm not sure how great I am, so please leave a review if you'd like. I got a little inspiration from Castle and the Mortal Instruments. I don't own the rights to these stories or their characters!

Also, tell me if you think I should continue the story, and I'll consider it. It was fun to write. Thanks lovelies! Hope you found it to your liking.


	2. Chapter 2 - Professionals

A/N: Thank you everyone for reviewing the first chapter! I was truly so nervous about it. I'm still having some trouble with the mistakes, but I think I'll start to improve as I go on. For example, I thought that they lived in the same apartment building, like the two ends of the building were connected for some reason, but then I realized that the agents just live in two separate buildings that are very close to each other. Also, if you have some plot ideas, you should totally fill me in. This is sort of a filler-chapter. Doing college work and keeping up with writing can be difficult. Thanks once again lovelies! 3

Rated K+

Chapter Two – Professionals

**-Riley's POV-**

The whole rest of the day, the agents tried to avoid each other. They'd sort of laughed the kiss off earlier. Neither of them decided to add that detail in their report -not that they were trying to sneak around or anything. They just didn't feel it necessary to mention, as there was still some measure of awkwardness in making out like a teenager with your partner.

She left for a lunch break and returned to finish her report. After staying still for too long, Riley went exploring down the corridors of the Cyber Unit, still trying to process things. Her hands twisted together.

Gabriel_ kissed_ her. And she'd kissed back. This was not good.

They were supposed to be professional agents. She was his protector, assigned a duty to keep him safe. Not have fantasies of playing tonsil-hockey with him. _Oh, but he played well_, she caught herself thinking.

God, she didn't even think of him like _that_. Sure, she liked their constant flirty banter sometimes. And if she had to admit, Gabriel wasn't unattractive. He had his rugged good looks and charm going for him, as well as his intelligence. And on occasion, he could be a really sweet guy. But that was all. She thought of him as a friend, a trustworthy partner. Besides, she was a professional who didn't like getting her feelings sorted into the mix.

She had reached the end of the corridors and headed back in the direction of her desk. What was she thinking anyway? She'd only got caught up in the moment. The finger she'd been twirling her hair with dropped.

They were just causing a distraction on a completely normal mission. And they were _acting_. Anyway, Gabriel was probably over it by now. Riley decided to put it in the back of her mind too. She wasn't going to get any work done like this.

Arriving at her desk, she pulled her feet under her to sit slouching in front of her laptop. The day was almost over anyway, so why not be comfortable? She smoothed down the skirt of the dress she still had on from earlier and pulled her hair up in a neat bun.

Not twenty minutes after checking her email, her computer started being difficult. It wouldn't let her access the internet even though the Wi-Fi signal was fine. She grunted. She knew how to solve this problem easily, but was too stubborn to do it. _She would not call him_.

Ten more minutes and she was close to throwing her computer out the window. They were in Cyber Command for Pete's sake - shouldn't the computers work best here? For some reason this was always the opposite case for her. Riley's hand hovered over her phone. Still uncompromising, she placed her back down in her lap. She would get a new computer if she had to.

Riley heard slow footsteps approaching her desk and sat upright. She saw the man she was desperately hoping not to see, but had to admit she was a little relieved. As it seemed, she might be saved from arranging a laptop funeral after all.

**-Gabriel's POV-**

After handing in his report, Gabriel walked back to his desk and sat down, trying to process the events of that day. He knew the cover-kiss didn't mean anything to Riley, so he decided he felt the same way. He got up and started pacing because of one little detail of the mission that bothered him, though.

The guardsmen who came out of the building earlier had suddenly stopped approaching the kissing agents. At first he'd thought that maybe their acting was really that good. But wasn't the whole situation a little too easy?

First off, it really hadn't been too hard to act like he was her boyfriend. He thought his acting had been phenomenal, not to mention _hers_. It wasn't like he was actually in love with Riley or anything. She just happened to be gorgeous and made the whole ordeal of 'distracting' a pleasant experience. He had no problem kissing beautiful women. She was a great partner who would always have his back, and he had no intention of ruining what they had by getting himself all worked up over one little kiss. _Okay, two, not-so-little kisses_, he corrected.

But back to his point – wouldn't the dangerous men who were ready to kill anyone who made trouble for them shoot people who were sneaking around on the spot? The first man, Paco, seemed gullible enough to believe them. But Gabriel had no doubt that he was about to give word to the rest of the men about the suspicious couple walking around their hideout. The second group of men who were coming towards them during the agents' kiss just backed off without approaching them. That behavior seemed odd.

He didn't believe in coincidences, so he looked around the building for an empty room to escape to. He used the chip in his head to access his memory and crosscheck it with the footage from the street cameras around the block they were on.

Suddenly, the images of the earlier mission came into view and replaced his vision of the Cyber Command Unit building. The scene was frozen in place, like a 3D-snapshot of the incident, frozen in time.

The first thing he saw was a couple making out on the side of the street. Wait a minute…was that really…? He blushed anew and momentarily forgot what he was looking for. He stepped closer to the frozen agents kissing. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

He was looking at himself but that wasn't him. The man he was looking at was some other guy, bent on seducing the girl he currently had pinned up against a wall. His hands were all over her, his face desperately close to hers. It gave him a funny feeling when he directed his attention to the image of Riley.

It was like his emotions came knocking right back into him again. Her pink cheeks were pressed right up against his, one hand fisted in his jacket (he didn't even remember that happening), leaving no space between them. His heart clenched. Gabriel couldn't stop staring voyeuristically the way they looked totally enrapt with each other's mouths. He couldn't help but want to return to the moment, _actually_ return, and see what it felt like all over again. She really was a brilliant kisser-

Gabriel shook his head and snapped out of it when he felt a light pressure in his lower abdomen. He remembered why he was there in the first place and turned around towards the men. The one closest to them was holding a cell phone in his hand and held a hand up towards the men behind him. The one directly to his side was also holding up a phone, presumably taking a photo of something. He gained access to each phone.

First, Gabriel pulled up a picture taken on the second man's phone of the SUV's license plate. Then, he traced the call of the first man to a phone inside. The first man's burner phone was linked to another, and Gabriel guessed he was calling the man in charge. He just had to find out the name of the head-honcho of this whole scheme, which he was sure he would learn soon since Lillian had already sent in a team to surround the building an hour ago.

One last thing caught his eye. A third guardsman was opening the door to a discreet vehicle a little ways away from the building. He was thankful that the security camera footage angles were in his favor today. He pulled the license from that car, noting it was stolen. He was looking towards the commotion with a look that could only be described as loathsome. _Looks like we pissed off someone_, Gabriel thought.

He realized there was a slight cause to worry, however, and he accessed a later moment when they were in the vehicle just to be sure. "Damn," he said aloud. As far as he could tell by glancing through the side-mirrors in the car, the third man had been following them. Accessing a string of further memories, he saw that the car stopped along with them at a gas station. The blurry footage from the station showed that the suspicious man had got out of his car and bumped into the SUV on his way to the store. They'd left before he came back out, but Gabriel was sure there was a bug placed on the car.

And as it just so happened, Riley had taken the same vehicle home for lunch, leading the man right to their apartment buildings.

Dammit.

He knew she'd returned back already, but now the guardsmen knew where she lived. And that meant he also probably knew where Gabriel lived.

He closed his eyes. When he opened them again he was back in the empty room, hands shaking in anger. He had to tell Riley.

Suddenly his anger was replaced with apprehensiveness. They still hadn't talked since they got back. His usually confidence seemed to have disappeared, so he did what any mature adult would do.

He hacked her computer and waited for her to call him.

He waited nearly a half-hour for her frustration to build. He even changed every password she had on her laptop, but his phone remained quiet.

Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair and started walking towards her office. They couldn't avoid each other forever.

"Having troubles?" He sauntered his way up to her desk.

"None at all," she replied unwaveringly.

Gabriel motioned towards the computer screen that was giving her away. "I was just going to email you about something and I noticed your laptop seemed to be in need of tech support," he lied.

"Wait, you can check my computer for viruses when you send emails?" She paused and said, "Or did you just need an excuse to come see me?" Her head tilted up in his direction.

Gabriel looked back with fake indignation. "I would never do such a thing. In fact, I'm appalled by your accusations, Agent Neal." He accessed the chip and slowly started healing her laptop.

"Yeah, right. Well it's a good thing you can fix what you broke." She noticed her laptop had stopped freaking out.

"I didn't do this, I'm telling you. I bet _you_ made the problems yourself so that _you_ could have an excuse to call me over." He lightly pushed her arm on the last word.

"You_ wish_. You can just admit you wanted to talk to me," she retorted.

Gabriel just chuckled and had his own reply on his tongue before she interrupted. "Wait, you did say you had something to talk about. What were you planning to tell me?" He didn't reply sarcastically when he saw her serious expression.

After he told her his thoughts about the man following them, she put her face in her hands on the desk. "And I stupidly led them home. Why couldn't I have just eaten here?" Riley groaned.

_She was really blaming herself for this whole mess?_ Gabriel wondered incredulously.

"How can you think this was your fault? You didn't know." This made Riley turn back to him and look at him directly in the eye for the first time since he'd walked in.

"Well, first of all I never go home for lunch. I don't know why I did today." Of course she knew why, but she wasn't going to tell Gabriel that she was avoiding him. "Second of all, I should've been paying more attention on the ride home and noticed we were being followed." She got up to pace in front of him. She had tugged the jacket on again, feeling her earlier warmth leave her.

Gabriel could feel the anxiety rolling off her in waves. He held some of the blame too. "Well you'd have thought I'd noticed earlier with the chip. I guess I maybe got ...got a little caught up in our, uh, distraction myself." He flinched because she'd turned on him with a glare.

"How did you manage to notice those new details about the guardsmen anyway? Looking back upon fond memories, eh?" She raised her eyebrow and smirked.

A faint blush appeared on his cheeks and he mumbled, "No." He really didn't want to get slapped so he told her the truth. "I was thinking that the guards left us alone a little too easily when we, you know, when we-"

"We kissed?" She asked. When he flinched again, she rolled her eyes. "C'mon Gabriel, like you said, it was a distraction." How many times did they need to keep going over this? "It wasn't real, so stop acting like a teenage boy. I mean, not that it wasn't a terrible kiss-" Her smirk fell when she realized her slip of the tongue.

"Wasn't a terrible kiss?" Gabriel repeated, feigning hurt. Her smirked though and added, "So you enjoyed it then."

She did smack him after that. "Oh you know what? Just focus Gabriel!" He noticed her chest puffing out defiantly. _Exquisitely_, he amended internally.

Looking back into her eyes, he saw that they had darkened a little. _Hmm, so he'd been right on point with his accusation._

"I'd rather talk about why you're blushing." His feet were moving of their own accord to stand two steps closer to her. Teasing her had to be one of his new favorite things.

"Why do you want to talk about it so much, Gabriel?" She smirked again, and added, "Maybe you think I enjoyed it just as much as you obviously did." Always one to stand her ground, she hadn't moved an inch in response to his closer proximity.

"Hey, that's not-" Gabriel started. He was interrupted by the sound of high heels rounding the corner and Lillian's approaching voice. The two agents jumped away from each other and waited for their boss to enter the room, hanging up her phone.

Lillian looked at the pair of them, flushed faces and eyes avoiding each other. Deciding to ignore whatever she interrupted, she asked, "What's this I heard about a man tailing you this morning?"

Gabriel forgot that he'd emailed her a short summary of the details on his way to visit Riley. They filled her in on the rest of the story, even the distraction.

"That wasn't mentioned on the reports," she questioned. The agents tried to explain themselves, but she sternly ordered, "This partnership is going to be kept professional, I expect." Riley and Gabriel nodded furiously and prepared themselves to endure their reprimand.

"_Professionals_," Lillian stressed, "Don't care about embarrassing their partners by putting _actual_ details of a report in their case. Loads of agents have used that distraction technique, anyway." Lillian made it a lot simpler when she put it that way and acted like the partners were being ridiculous (which they now realized that they were). After telling the agents to amend their reports, she discussed what was to be done about their apartment building situation.

In the end, it was decided that Gabriel and Riley would move to a safe house for a couple days while a detail was put on their street, watching for any sign of the third man returning. _Effective immediately_. They protested at first, saying they were more than capable of protecting themselves in their own homes, being specially trained agents and all. Of course, Lillian would hear none of it. She wanted Gabriel in an especially safe place so the chip wouldn't be put in harm's way anymore than it already was on a daily basis.

The agents sighed and grabbed their go-bags that they'd prepared in case of emergency. It was their own fault that they'd been too busy seeing how far they could tease the other, like some sort of hormone-fueled competition, instead of paying attention to the mission at hand.

They silently agreed to be perfectly well-behaved the next few days. After all, what could go wrong when two partners, who obviously had no real romantic interest in each other, were assigned to a nice, quiet safe house all alone for a few days?

A/N: Okay so this was really short! They talked about the incident… I know there wasn't much romance in this one but justttt wait till next chapter – coming REALLY soon. ;) I hope you enjoyed it. Please feel free to leave reviews. :D


	3. Chapter 3 - Exhaustion

A/N: Yay I updated again! I'd like to thank everybody for all of the nice responses I got on the last chapters. You guys are so awesome. Keep on hittin' that review button! :D Also, Happy Valentine's Day, or as I like to call it, single-awareness day. For those of you without a significant other to hang with these days, you can do what I like to do and curl up with a nice fanfic. I'll try to do this chapter justice. Enjoy reading, my lovelies!

Rated: T (for safety)

Chapter 3 – Exhaustion

Gabriel had allowed Riley to drive to the safehouse. So far, after forty-five minutes of driving, the agents had only made a little small talk, both tired from the day's events. Neither was thrilled with having to be isolated in a cabin either, which was in fact over an hour away from the city, for even the smallest amount of time.

Gabriel tried hacking the internet with the chip but found that he really couldn't distract himself from the awkward silence in the car. He was hoping his partner would cheer up or turn the radio on or _something_. The whole trip, she'd barely even looked at him. Gabriel glanced over to her, seeing the tight set of her posture. Noting the way she kept crossing the yellow line on the highway, Gabriel soon offered to drive. "You look pretty exhausted, that's all," he explained.

"I'm perfectly capable here. There's nothing wrong with…with my-"She paused to yawn and succeeded in running a red light. She barely noticed.

"Look! You didn't even realize you just illegally drove through an intersection." She looked over at him and then in the rear-view mirror, eyes widening.

She cursed. "That was just incredibly ill timing for a yawn. Maybe I'll switch seats in a mile or so." Riley was being really stubborn. She was probably still mad at the predicament they were in, if the way her hands tightened their grip on the steering wheel were anything to go by. She knew it wasn't strictly Gabriel's fault, but she couldn't help but direct her anger at him.

He decided he wasn't having any of it. "So help me, I will turn off the car and pull you over myself if I have to." When she didn't respond, Gabriel gave her a warning look. "Riley!"

She huffed. "Fine." She suddenly wasn't in the mood to fight with him. She turned on her blinker and pulled over on the side of the road.

As soon as she was in the passenger seat, she felt a whole weight lift off her shoulder. Her eyes immediately felt heavy. Shortly before drifting off, she heard Gabriel say, "Don't worry. I made sure they wouldn't give you a ticket. Just a quick hack into the system."

She hummed in response as Gabriel chuckled. He glanced over at her, thinking that maybe she deserved a good nap. He turned up the heat in the vehicle to make her comfortable and started up the car again.

* * *

Riley blinked her eyes. Gabriel's face was once again inches from hers. A cold breeze blew over her.

Her brow furrowed. Wait, she wasn't dreaming anymore…So why was close enough so that she could smell his cologne? She blinked again and looked around the interior of the car.

"Hey sleeping beauty," he smiled tightly, "It's cold out here and I'd like to get inside." He hadn't moved from his spot, leaning in from the open door on her side of the car. They must have arrived in Cunningham Falls State Park. He tugged on her arm to get her moving and out of the vehicle. He'd probably woken Riley up when he'd stretched across her to take off her seatbelt.

"You were going to carry me." She said it as more of a statement than a question. She must have still been sleepy because she giggled, bringing her coat closer around her shoulders. She only laughed more when he rolled his eyes and shrugged.

"What?" He considered denying it, but knew she'd just bust him the more he tried to. "I thought it would be easier that way. Plus you weren't responding to me trying to wake you up before." They'd reached the steps of the log cabin. He was quite impressed with the perks that came with this job - at least they weren't stuck in some ruddy motel room.

"I was pretty tired, I guess…" Riley's words died away as she walked into the cabin. She was speechless; it looked like a one-story vacation home. There was a fireplace, a big couch, and a fully-equipped kitchen. Her heels clacked down the hallway as she went to find the bedrooms. To her right was a big master bedroom, to her left was a slightly smaller bedroom. It seemed like the only bathroom was located in the bigger room.

Gabriel was out in the living room when she heard him groan. She immediately rushed to where he was, hand at her gun.

"Aww, not even a TV?" he said. Riley rolled her eyes and re-holstered her weapon. Men and their television.

He followed her on her walk back down the hallway, grabbing his bags as he went. They went into the bigger room again and both sat down on the bed. "Hey look, here's the TV," Riley said. "Not that it's much help to you, seeing as this is going to be my room."

Gabriel whipped his head in her direction. "Like hell! This is the better room." He gave her a hard stare, daring her to challenge him.

She gladly took that challenge. "I got here first. Finders, keepers. Why can't I just have it?" She gave him an endearing smile and bit her lip for show. Riley knew perfectly well how to use her womanly powers of persuasion.

He opened his mouth, but nothing came out because he was too busy staring at _her_ mouth. He hated when she did that. It was totally not fair. And since when did they decide on sitting so close together on this bed? He glanced up to her teasing eyes. Maybe he could relent, but only a little.

"Why don't we just switch every other night? That way we both get to sleep in this bed," he proposed. Riley's expression made him laugh. "Poor choice of words, but you get the idea." He gave her a blatant once-over.

"You're disgusting," Riley rolled her eyes. Against her will, Riley's mind had given her a visual of the two of them, sleeping in the same bed. It was an image that was all too swiftly replaced with the two of them rolling around, entangled in the sheets- and they certainly were not sleeping. She cleared her throat. "But it sounds like a good idea to me." At his suggestive look, she added, "I meant the _switching_."

"Alright then. Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!" He started off so quickly she barely had time to form a rock-shaped fist. He covered her hand with his flat, paper-shaped palm. He beamed. "I win."

That same infuriating grin was reappearing on his face- the one Riley couldn't decide if she wanted to smack or kiss off.

_Wait. __**Kiss**__ off?_

Riley shook her head and glanced back and forth between his dimples and the hand that was still clamped over hers. "No fair. Two out of three?" she begged. He just ignored her, brought her hand up and kissed it in mock-celebration.

"Thank you oh-so much, Riley! This was a wonderful housewarming gift to give me today." Gabriel dropped her hand and started hanging up his coat in the closet, dumping his bag at the bottom. He really could be infuriating. "For your kindness, I'll let you have the shower first in the morning."

"Oh gee, you're so thoughtful." She took her bag across the hall and huffed. She really wanted that bigger room. He didn't deserve to have it first. Besides, wasn't it the gentlemanly thing to do to give a lady the better room? Gabriel certainly was a different sort of man, and not just because of the chip in his head. At least he didn't give her any pitying special treatment.

She was in the midst of hanging up a dress that she didn't want her bag to make wrinklier when Gabriel poked his head in her room. He walked up to her and took it right out of her hands. "Hey-"

"I have definitely got to get you to wear this while we're up here," he was saying while admiring the article of clothing. He gave her an apologetic look and hung the dress up when she smacked his arm. He put his hands in his pockets and asked, "Why did you bring a dress up to the mountains anyway?"

"It wasn't on purpose. I always pack a dress in case of emergency. You'd never guess how much they come in handy." She sighed, and Gabriel could almost imagine her all spiffed up in the lacy black dress. If it looked anything like the red dress she'd worn today, he couldn't wait to get her into it. _Or out of it._

It looked like he wasn't going to get rid of his dirty thoughts anytime soon. Best to just embrace them and enjoy his internal commentary. It wasn't like she could hear what his mind imagined her doing anyway, so he figured there was no harm in daydreaming. He could see Riley now, hair up and dress hugging her curves, tan legs stretching on forever. Gabriel saw himself tugging her hand so that she fell into his chest again, his body pressed against hers, hands exploring her waist.

He didn't realize his feet were moving until he was an arm's reach away from her. She glanced up from her unpacking to frown at the intense way he was looking at her. "Something wrong?"

He held her gaze for a beat longer and turned around to head for the kitchen, making a swift exit. "I think I'll make dinner," he called, slightly embarrassed.

He had to move himself out of her proximity. Jeez, this was getting out of hand. Some food and a goodnight's rest would do them both well, and hopefully whatever he was feeling about her today would die a natural death by morning. He just really needed some space- not that there was any abundant supply of that in the cabin.

Riley returned when she smelled the dinner cooking. Apparently it was a mac-n-cheese sort of night. It was just as well, because she was really in need of some comfort food. She was feeling exhausted for no particular reason and it was affecting her mood. Not only was she having a harder time keeping herself from flirting, but she had actually giggled in his presence today. _Giggled._ She knew was acting like a schoolgirl, and that bothered her the most. _Only five hours of sleep the night before could do that to her,_ she concluded.

She silently sauntered into the kitchen. Gabriel was adorning an apron and humming along to the kitchen radio. He looked so at home; almost domestic. She couldn't put a finger on why this seemed so strange, except for the fact that she never imagined her hardcore, technologically-gifted, gun-toting partner strutting around the kitchen, making dinner as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Riley wouldn't have thought he'd be the cooking type.

He nearly jumped out of his skin when she spoke. "You're really making that apron work for you." Riley laughed as his wide-eyed expression turned into a sour pout. He walked over to where she was leaning against the counter.

"A little warning would be nice, you know. It's not nice to sneak up on people like that." His lip poked out adorably, but his pout was gone in an instant. He grabbed her wrist and brought her over to the stove. "Try this. It's a homemade recipe – not that gross stuff you always make from a box." At her questioning look, he added, "You forget I've seen your recycling bin."

He held up a spoonful of the cheese sauce and let her mouth close over the spoon. She hummed in response, licking her lips when it spilled. Gabriel took his thumb to reach the excess sauce on her chin and popped it into his own mouth. "I was right, that _is_ good."

She nodded in agreement and mumbled something about 'getting his own cheese.' His eyes were dancing a bit at the moment. There again was that spark of awareness that settled between them.

"You still got a bit left on your cheek," he teased. Her eyes widened. His hand reached up and had just barely grazed her chin before she caught the look in his eyes and moved away.

"_I've_ got it this time," she said, damning the slight hitch in her voice. Riley tried to silence the voice in her head that told her he would probably have eaten it right off her face if allowed him the chance. He smiled as if he could read her thoughts.

She moved to set the table, turning so that he couldn't see the heat on her cheeks, hearing him chuckle when she moved to the dining room. She made sure to set each place at opposite ends of the table, putting as much distance between themselves as possible.

After his latest attempt at rattling her composure, she sure as hell wasn't going to make herself an easy target at his disposal.

* * *

After eating what was probably the most delicious mac n' cheese Riley had ever eaten, she'd offered to clean up the dishes. Gabriel walked down the hall to change into sweatpants, but stopped by Riley's room when he heard a strange noise.

He went in to investigate further. In the room, he could hear a distinct scratching noise, followed by a squeak. Suddenly, a white blur scampered across his toes. "Jesus!"

"What is it?" Riley called from the kitchen. She rushed in, hand once again at her hip, ready to face down any danger. Gabriel swore and walked over to a little hole in the wall.

"Looks like you've got a tiny roommate." He wished there was a thermal imaging device that was installed along with the chip. He could find the mouse in no time flat. "Hope you don't mind mice."

"It probably won't give me any trouble when I'm in the room. I don't scare easy, anyway." She gave him a pointed look, and he remembered that he'd let out a small exclamation a minute ago.

"I wasn't prepared for it to practically _crawl up my leg_," he grouched.

She grinned at him and left the room. A little while longer and she was done with the dishes and went to see if he had unpacked. Instead, Riley later found her partner in front of the dark fireplace, cursing the matches that he was wasting. "What's wrong, need somebody to light your fire?"

He grinned up at her when she wiggled her eyebrows and stopped his efforts. "As it happens, rain makes for wet firewood. I think there's a leak in the woodshed." Riley remembered how slippery and muddy it had been when they arrived. "Let's go see if the TV signal's working."

Indeed it was. They both sat a comfortable distance away from each other and watched reruns of Lost. Every so often they'd talk about the characters and their horrid situation, sharing memories about watching the show for the first time.

"I always liked Claire. I could see me being friends with a girl like her," Riley was saying.

"That Sawyer guy was always my favorite," Gabriel replied. Riley rolled her eyes.

"But he's always so snarky." Riley didn't tell him that she loved Sawyer just the same.

"That's what makes him so funny, though!"

"And _annoying_."

And they kept the conversation going in this manner until they were both weary. Eventually, Riley grew completely silent. Gabriel's head was bobbing, trying to prevent himself from falling asleep in his upright position. He shut the television off and moved to where Riley was sound asleep. He slid his hands underneath her warm form and scooped her up, surprised at how light she turned out to be.

He was careful not to smack her head on any doorways, and he set her gently in bed. The only reason he'd moved her was because he thought he could at least perform one gentlemanly act today (though he wouldn't have minded sharing some bed space). Her shoes were already off, and he wasn't about to undress her without her permission, so he settled on placing a blanket over her slumbering form. She'd curled into a ball and reached out to grab his hand, muttering incoherently. "Thnankgs, Gaybreel," was all he could make out. Her hand left his as quickly as it came and curled back against her chest.

_So this is what she looks like when she sleeps_, he sighed. His heart clenched in a way he wasn't prepared for. It was so out of sorts for her to be completely relaxed, worry lines gone. He found her to be endearingly peaceful like this. Giving her one last look behind his shoulders, he closed the door and fell into his own bed.

Their first night hadn't been terrible. They'd kept the fighting to a minimum, at least. He was mostly remembering the pleasant moments they'd shared that day. He'd gotten a taste of her sweet lips, something he didn't even know he'd wanted. He still wasn't sure he should want them, seeing as he'd swore to keep it professional. He would keep it that way of course, but would enjoy himself this weekend all the same.

* * *

Gabriel awoke to see a white ceiling in a log bedroom. He sat up quickly. _Fire? No, doesn't smell right._ He looked to see the bathroom door open a crack. _Oh_.

He laid back down and glanced at the alarm clock. It read 6:00 AM. He groaned. _Figures she would stick to her early schedule when they were on vacation._

He put his pillow over his head and dozed off for a few more minutes. The noise of the shower had brought many fantasies to his mind, however, and he couldn't ignore that sort of thing this early in the morning. _She was naked. In his shower._ The door wasn't even closed all the way, so he could have easily come right in. _And joined her._

He shifted his legs into a more comfortable position and tried to tamp down the arousing thoughts. _Down boy_, he chided himself. The water was shutting off and he saw shadows move against the steamy opening of the door. Then, the door opened to let the steam billow out. He feigned sleep to give her some privacy, but reopened his eyes when he realized she had a towel on and was only brushing her hair. _She hadn't noticed he was awake yet, then._

Gabriel noticed the water droplets clinging to her shoulders and skittering down her bare legs. He could get used to a morning view like this. He looked up to see that he had been caught peeking in the mirror. She turned on him with a devilish grin as he looked away. "Morning sleepyhead."

"Good morning to you, Agent Neal." His voice was still husky from sleep. He self-consciously ran a hand through his bed-head and scratched at his morning stubble. He finally looked back into her eyes and saw a she was still grinning wickedly. "What?" She moved to stand before the doorway of the bathroom.

"Are you seriously scared of a woman in a towel? God you should see your face," she was laughing. "You can't be thinking I'd have any ability to cause you harm right now. So if that's not it, what, are you afraid of me showing a little skin?" This was probably a dangerous outfit to be taunting him in.

He pulled back the covers on his bed. _Yup. Definitely dangerous. _

She learned that he slept only in boxer shorts. His muscled form, warm and rosy from sleep, came to stand in the doorway of the bathroom. She brought her line of sight up from his abdominals slowly to reach his face, which, once again, was dimpled with a smile that packed a punch. In his husky, sleep-ridden voice, he stated, "Quite the opposite. I'm really loving this new look, actually." Up this close, he could see a few droplets of water still clinging to her eyelashes.

His darkened eyes silenced whatever retort she had planned. Gabriel's hand reached out to grab her waist where the towel was tucked in. His stubble scratched her damp cheek when he leaned in to grace the shell of her ear. His other hand that he'd been using to support himself was now tracing her bare shoulder, gliding down the skin of her arm to rest on her wrist, tugging her so that she crossed the threshold of the room. She felt the goosebumps on her forearm rise as he spoke again. "You should wear it more often."

He paused to rest his cheek against her hair, but she could feel that damn smile against her temple again. That cocky bastard knew what he was doing to her.

She moved her hands to cover both of his, bringing them into the small space between their bodies. She moved her forehead back, making sure he could see her expression. Her eyes were focused solely on his lips, enticing him further. She bit her lip and dropped both his hands to reach up to his bare chest.

She'd started pushing him backwards into the room, towards the bed. Gabriel almost couldn't believe how far she was letting this go. But then he realized that the space between them was not actually getting smaller.

She gave him a light push and he fell onto the bed. Before he could gather his wits, she'd released a triumphant laugh and escaped out into the hallway, shutting the door to her room.

He sighed, deciding to shower himself. He liked that she gave as good as she got, but sometimes she was downright cruel. He knew he could force himself to be immune to her wiles if he tried hard enough.

Just to be safe, he made sure the shower was extra cold.

**-Bonus Segment- Warning: Rated C for Cheesiness -**

_Flashback to Valentine's Day_

They'd only been working together for a short time when February 14th came rolling around. Riley was in the break room, sitting on the couch with her laptop. Gabriel had come in to see why he'd heard her chuckling.

"Sorry if I was being noisy. I just keep finding these really cheesy V-day cards online. Look at this one," Riley pointed at her screen.

"I'm glad I brought my Library card, 'cause I'm checking you out." He grimaced and read another. "Are you Google? Because you're everything I'm searching for."

"It's so stupid yet so entertaining." Riley chuckled and shook her head. "I don't know how people come up with these."

"Oh c'mon it's easy, not to mention _lame_. Just think of a come-on, and then make it awkward and stupid." Gabriel raised his eyebrows at her and sat down. "Aren't people just putting comic sans font on weird photos of people? How are you enjoying this?" when he looked closer at the Tumblr page she was scrolling down. "You're right. It is entertaining to see how weird people can be."

Riley frowned at him. "Sounds like somebody doesn't like Valentine's Day. You're such a grouch." She left the room to entertain herself elsewhere. Who was he to judge people having good-natured fun?

A couple hours later, Riley got an email with an attachment. She opened it and immediately fell into a wheezing bout of laugher. This was definitely an appropriate apology.

Gabriel had photoshopped his own picture onto a card and written, in a horribly cheesy font, "I'll _cyber-_render you speechless, Valentine."

What dorks they both were.

A/N: And there you have it. Tell me how it went – click that pretty review button for me. I know you were probably expecting me to finish this at least before V-Day, but as fate would have it, I was having a busy school week. I had to add in a little bonus section at the end, so maybe that'll make up for the late update. Don't worry, there's more romance ahead. Patience, my dear friends. **Also,special thanks to my friend, diana-of-wales, for giving me some great prompts and offers of help.** Thanks for reading! Still think I should continue?


	4. Chapter 4 - Temptations

A/N: I'm loving all the great responses I'm getting to the story! Thanks so much guys – I appreciate the support. To reward you lovelies, things in this chapter are going to get a little heated up. *grabs popcorn and waits*

Disclaimer: Never was mine, never will be.

Rated: T

Chapter 4 - Temptations

After Gabriel had finished getting ready, he stepped up to the living room window to get a glimpse of the sunrise through a big clearing in the trees. An orange and pink haze was settling over the mountains, which was really quite magnificent. He'd not been able to see anything in the dark last night, but was glad to be able to enjoy this breathtaking scenery while sipping his cup of coffee. He looked across the yard to see that Riley was feeding a flame in a little campfire area.

Setting down his empty mug, he grabbed a coat and walked out to meet her. The ground was still a little wet from the recent rainfall and he yanked his shoe up out of a mud-puddle. "How are you starting a fire? I thought everything was wet?"

She continued to blow on the kindling and watched as the sparks danced onto the woodpile. It soon caught fire and she stood up, smiling triumphantly as she answered. "Easy; this wood was already sitting here with a cover over it. It kept out the rain, thus giving us the chance to cook some breakfast." Gabriel looked under the woodpile to see that it was resting on top of a metal plate, which was why the ground wasn't making the wood damp.

"You do know we have a kitchen, right? Why not use that?" He asked as he pulled a sitting log over to the fire anyways, trying to keep warm in the cool morning air. Gabriel still thought it was ridiculous that they were even out of bed before sunrise.

She looked at him with raised eyebrows. "C'mon. Have you ever eaten fire-roasted bagels for breakfast? They're delicious." She quipped as she sat on a log next to him and grabbed some bagels out of the bag resting nearby. "I also found these old-fashioned hot dog roasters hanging inside the pantry doors. All you have to do is open them and clamp the bagel inside," she said, handing him one of the objects.

"This is probably the strangest way I've ever eaten my breakfast. Where'd you learn this stuff anyway?" Gabriel asked. He did as she said and held his bagel over the flames.

"My grandparents used to own a hunting cabin in the middle of the woods, and they'd invite me to join them for a couple days every summer." Riley responded as she stopped to watch the sun peeking over the trees near the yard, feeling nostalgic. "The First Kids used to love cooking food this way. Besides, everything tastes better when it's grilled over a campfire." She finished as she looked over at him, sharing a smile.

When the food had started to get brown around the edges, they placed the bagels on the plates Riley had brought out. Surprisingly, they were actually really good this way and Gabriel let her know as much when he moaned quietly after the first bite. "Not bad at all, Camp Counselor."

She rolled her eyes at the nickname and bit into her own bagel. They sat in a comfortable silence and finished their breakfast, watching the sun rise higher into the light morning sky. Wiping her mouth, Riley looked across the yard to see a little hiking trail through the woods. Turning to Gabriel, she said, "I was reading a campground map earlier that said the hiking trails are really good around here. Apparently, most of them lead to a nearby lake."

He nodded his head, mouth still full, so she continued.

"Do you want to try that one out?" She pointed in the direction of the woods. "It's not like we're going to have much fun stuck inside the cabin today."

He swallowed. "But there's a game on today." Riley rolled her eyes and gave him a look that told him she was not impressed.

"There are plenty of games on. All the time. There will never _not _be a game on, so you'll always have the chance to watch one later. I'm sure you can just pull up a game-rewind in your head later." He grunted. "C'mon. How often do you get to spend time in the great outdoors? We have to enjoy ourselves while we're here, do new things!"

Gabriel stood up and just to get her to be quiet, he consented. Much to her delight, he said he'd go change into more comfortable hiking gear as soon as it warmed up a little.

As she went to her room to do the same, Riley knew that a little nature hike would get him feeling better in no time. She felt more at ease here, much less on edge. For now, she felt confident that the guardsmen they'd been on the run from wouldn't be showing up anytime soon. As she finished changing, she picked up her phone to call Lillian for an update.

Gabriel knocked on her door ten minutes later, listening to the end of the phone conversation. "Did Lillian have any good news for us?" He asked as stepped into her room.

"The warehouse we infiltrated yesterday has been wiped clean at the hands of CCU's top agents. Second to us of course," she added with a wink. "Unfortunately, the only man they still need to get into custody is missing, and it looks to be the same man you pointed out."

"How do they know he's a definite suspect?" Gabriel questioned.

"Some of the goons gave him away. You know, bad guys are never as scary as they look after they're arrested." They both chuckled.

The temperature had risen to a nice sixty-eight degrees, so Riley had shed the jacket she had on earlier, which now smelled of smoke. "Hopefully we'll warm up as we go, right?" she asked, gesturing to her T-shirt and shorts.

He nodded and followed her out the door. "How long is this going to take?"

"I'm going to ignore you if you keep complaining." She stated as she stepped into the woods, feet following the dusty trail. At least the sun was drying up the mud. She really did miss her camping trips, running around the roots of trees and seeing how fast she could climb the maples. All around her was a green canopy, and she could hear the songs of the blue jays and cedar waxwings.

Gabriel was starting to notice how serene and calming the woods could be. He didn't have the option to get away often, seeing as he was an extremely valuable asset to the country and wasn't allowed to go off the grid. Unless, of course, he was purposefully avoiding anyone. But this was different. He wasn't running from anyone, only hiding in case a supposedly dangerous man just happened to find them.

He picked up his pace to trail behind Riley, keeping just behind her as the path narrowed. From here, he watched the muscles in her legs work to propel her forward, moving her hips in a strangely enticing way. Rather than watch the foliage go by around him, he'd decided to focus on a much more pleasant view. She spoke up, "The scenery is great out here, huh?"

"Oh, definitely," He replied. He wasn't lying, at least. However, he was caught when she glanced over her shoulder at him. He didn't realize it immediately and knocked into her when she stopped short, causing the two of them to tumble toward the ground. She smartly flipped them over so that Gabriel broke her fall and they both grunted.

"Ah," he said weakly. "At least I didn't land on a root. Wouldn't want to break the chip," he ground out.

She tried to move off him, but ended up crashing right onto him again as her foot slid in a patch of slick mud. Their shins were both grimy now, and she muttered her apologies, accidentally kneeing him when she tried to move again.

"Just- just hold on there a minute," he said, holding her in place. "I want to at least have the option of having children someday."

She blew at the hair that landed in her face during the fall. "Maybe if you weren't so busy staring at my ass, you'd have a better chance."

Despite the fact that his groin was competing with his head to see which hurt worse, he found himself smiling at her saucy comeback. "Was that advice or an offer?"

"Ugh, in your dreams, Vaughn."

"All the time." Gripping her hips, he set her on her feet. "Alright, let's both be a little more careful this time."

She dusted herself off, frowning at the mud caking her legs. "Too tired for an exciting excursion I see. Are you turning into an old man?" she taunted.

"Old - _old man_?" he repeated, glaring at her. "That's not what I'm saying!" Riley heard his drawl when he emphasized his last sentence.

"Sure, old-timer. If you're not too tired, then try to keep up." Her eyes were dancing, and she laughed as she suddenly took off sprinting down the trail. Gabriel shook his head at her antics, but he wasn't about to let her beat him. He bolted after, gaining on her quickly.

Like kids on the playground, they ran faster uphill, each getting their turn at the front of the race. Finally, both stopped at a peak in the trail, laughing and gasping for air. "I totally had you beat," Gabriel said, and received a push from Riley.

"Are you kidding? I got to this spot first." She straightened her posture and looked down ahead of them. "Hey – looks like we made it to the lake!" She was surprised when he pushed past her, taking off his shirt to reveal his tan back, covered in sweat. She followed him in amusement. "There's a rope swing over there if you're planning on cooling off."

He looked in the direction she was gesturing to and headed over, removing his shoes to sport some bare feet. The muscles in his back rippled as he grabbed the rope swing, walked backwards, and swung forwards with a great splash in the water. Riley fanned herself off, overcome by a strange and sudden wave of heat.

While he floated on his back, Gabriel shouted, "Come on in, Riley. Water's warm." He hadn't expected her to actually follow suit, but glanced up at the shore towards her anyway. What he saw next nearly made his jaw drop.

Riley reached up, lifting her shirt over her head. His eyes fell upon a black bikini top she'd worn underneath her T-shirt, giving him a perfect view of her bare curves. Next, she shimmied out of her shorts. When she turned around to set her clothes down, the waistband of the bikini shorts dipped lower. _No tan lines_, he thought and gulped. This morning was turning out to be far better than he'd imagined.

She used the rope swing to create a big splash in the water near him. When she surfaced, she pushed her hair out of her face. "You're right, this is really nice." All he could do was swallow the lump that had formed in his throat.

After a minute or so of turning his head, so as not to gawk at her stunning form, he told himself to get a grip and swam over to her. "Nice suit by the way. I see we both packed accordingly for a swim."

"Well I did think it would get warmer. Besides, hiking always makes me hot."

"Does it now?" he chuckled, swimming closer. She glared over at him through squinted eyes.

"You know what I mean," she said. Her eyes turned less menacing as he came nearer to her, unsure of what he was about to do. Suddenly her eyes widened, and she shouted, "No, wait!"

But it was too late; he'd grabbed her shoulders and dunked her under the water. After only two seconds, he released his grip, laughing as she sputtered and coughed. "How – how dare – you – you jerk!" was all she could make out between breaths. She seemed to be having trouble staying upright.

He grabbed her waist and let her ankles wrap around his calves for support, laughter dying away as he started to feel bad. "Sorry, partner. Just breathe." He tried to give her his most winning smile to cheer her out of her fit.

"That was mean," she croaked. Her hands were gripping his arms, trying to stay above the waterline. She held herself there, taking easy breaths before she realized the position they'd found themselves in. "Drowning a girl is not the most conventional way to get her into your arms, Gabriel."

He choked on a surprised laugh. "No ulterior motives here, just trying to help you breathe."

"Yeah,_ after_ depriving me of oxygen for your own entertainment."

"It was a little funny." Gabriel swore under his breath when she gave a sharp pinch to ribs. "Hey! It was for barely two seconds."

"Warn a girl first, eh?" They'd slipped back into their regular teasing banter more easily than she'd thought possible. "And buy me dinner first."

His arms tightened around her waist further and Gabriel felt the sweet pressure of her hips colliding with his. "As you'll remember, I _made_ you dinner myself last night. And it was damn good."

She felt heat on her cheeks. "Still. I'd prefer to keep this muddy water out of my lungs, thank you very much." She looked down at their conjoined bodies, willing herself to think of an excuse to separate herself from his tantalizing hips.

"You know, I am medically certified. I'd always be happy to give you CPR," he teased, glancing at her slightly parted lips. He leaned down so that their foreheads were almost resting upon one another. "Still need air?"

Her throat went dry. Riley's warning bells were ringing inside her head, telling her this was heating up too fast. Why did they always end up like this? It seemed that whenever she turned around, there he was, invading her personal space and fogging up her mind. He slid one of his hands from her waist to her lower spine, tracing a circular pattern. She shivered, and his fingers started climbing towards the tie on the back of her suit, resting in place as he watched her pupils widen. _Some air would be nice right about now._

She was saved from answering him, however, when a speedboat came cruising towards them, slowing to a stop about a hundred feet away. She simultaneously thanked and cursed the powers that be.

Gabriel let out a growl. He extracted his body from her, save one hand that was resting on her bare back. The woman steering the boat introduced herself as a park ranger. "Hey folks! I was just cruising around to tell all our guests that there's going to be a big party down at the main lodge. All campers are welcome, so come on down and visit. I expect you already heard about our campsite's twenty-fifth anniversary party? We've been planning for a long time. Oh, that's probably why you came for the week anyway, so I won't tell you what you don't already know. You folks have a nice afternoon!" She started up the boat without waiting for an answer, not letting them get a word in edgewise.

"Didn't know 'Ms. Bates' was stopping by for a visit," Gabriel remarked.

Riley turned to him in astonishment. "You read Jane Austen?" She wouldn't have thought he was the type to read a classic romance novel, especially not _Emma_.

He just tapped the side of his head. "Online reading." Riley laughed at that. She guessed he might have been able to consume book material faster when they were available to be automatically downloaded in his head.

They made their way back to shore, drying themselves off in the sun before putting their clothing back on. "Let's take it easy back to the cabin this time," Riley said, glancing at the trail that led steeply up into the woods.

"Agreed." He wasn't happy about yet another intrusion of a perfect moment, but decided to satisfy himself with letting her precede him again.

"Let's just enjoy the view," she murmured, walking at a slower pace.

_Enjoy the view he would._

* * *

Both of the agents were starving when they got back. Riley fixed them up a couple of chicken sandwiches on the stove, putting the pre-sautéed pieces in between bread and cooking it like grilled cheese. "Where do you come up with these meals?" They seemed so simple, but he'd never tried them before.

"Oh just eat it, it's delicious." She took a bite into her own buttery sandwich, closing her eyes at the flavor. The sun beating down on them only intensified when they'd left the shade of the woods, leaving Riley's stomach hot and hungry. She was so glad she knew how to be able to fix a quick meal when she needed to.

When they'd finished their sandwiches, each took a quick rinse in the shower to get off the grime from the lake. Gabriel was putting a clean shirt over his head when he heard her shriek. He ran across the hall and busted open the door.

Riley was standing near the door in a defensive position, clad in only her bra and underwear. He tried hard to look away, but it was sort of hot when he kept getting the chance to see her like this. He cleared his throat and asked, "Where's the danger?"

She obviously hadn't heard him enter the room and jumped. "Geez, turn around!" He didn't move.

"I just saw you in your bathing suit, how is this any different?"

She tugged her arms around her stomach self-consciously anyway. "Ugh. Will you just look at my suitcase?" He gave her a perturbed look and followed orders. Not a split-second later, he jumped back.

"Guess your roommate decided to bring his whole family," he said with a grimace. He really didn't like mice, especially not when they'd made a nest in his partner's suitcase. Riley told him that she'd found them when she was digging for new clothes, clothes that now had "disgusting mouse-germs" all over them, as she so delicately put.

"Can I borrow a long shirt or something?" she asked. At the break in her voice, he knew he couldn't tease her. She was probably pretty embarrassed by now, so he went to go get a pair of shorts and a shirt from his own bag. Just in case, he made sure there was no extra house guests in his pile either.

When he came back and handed her the clothes, he noticed a slight redness to her eyes. Maybe she'd been putting on an act earlier when she'd said mice didn't bother her. Or, maybe she was having an issue deeper than that. So, he put on a smile, going less for charming, more for cheering her up. "How about I take your clothes down to the laundry mat by the main lodge and let you change?" She barely nodded. "You alright?"

"Never better," she quipped, frown replaced with a small smile. She'd seen actual concern in his eyes, earlier. For some reason, it was shaking her and making her realize that he might actually care about her, but she didn't know why it was making tears spring to her eyes. She was a tough agent, one who'd worked with the Secret Service for years. Maybe it was that he was being sincere for once, and not a total jackass. She wasn't going to pass this up though, and looked into his blue depths. "Thanks, Gabriel. That's sweet of you."

He seemed to accept this and soon left. It gave her a chance to think about things, and just how quickly they were moving. He was unintentionally breaking down her carefully erected barriers, and she wasn't so sure how she felt about that. She vowed still never to let her professionalism waver, however, and left it at that. Finally calming down after gathering some dryer wood outside and placing it in the cabin's interior fireplace for later, she laid down on the couch to await Gabriel's return.

* * *

An hour and a half later, she heard the screen door swing open and she opened her eyes. A quick flicker of worry passed her features when she realized that she should have went with him to make sure no guardsmen had snuck up on him. A rush of panic caused her to sit up and look over the edge of the couch, seeing that he had come back all in one piece. She let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

Riley then heard footsteps come over to the couch and a quick intake of breath escape her partner's mouth. "Comfy?" he asked, voice a little rough. When she glanced up at him through sleepy, lidded eyes, he swallowed, "Do the clothes fit all right?" He didn't think seeing Riley in his clothes would have such an effect on him.

She rose from the couch then, showing him how baggy the clothes were on her. "They might need a little tailoring, that's for sure. I considered wearing the shirt like a dress," she paused, riding up the article of clothing in question to show him how the shorts were hiding underneath, "but I figured that it might be a little unprofessional to go hanging around the house pant-less."

And with that, his mouth went dry. His fingers twitched where his arms hung resolutely at his sides. "You? Unprofessional? Never." He joined her side as she stood in front of the dark fireplace. She was leaning down and setting a match to the woodpile. It had started to cloud over outside, making the inside of the Cabin darker and cooler.

"I don't know. I don't feel as though we've been acting very mature lately," she remarked. He was gazing at her intensely again, watching her face as she stood back up in front of him. A spark of awareness once again jolted in the air between them. As of late, the air always seem to be charged whenever they got within five feet of each other. "Especially when you stare at me like that. Do you really have to give me that look?"

"What look?"

She gestured to his eyes impatiently and he finally looked away. "You've been acting like this for two days now. What's the problem?" She decided to bring up the topic they'd been avoiding. "Didn't think I could kiss you so convincingly, is that it?"

She was just teasing him now. The corners of his mouth kicked up. "I'll have you know that the kiss was completely platonic. I was perfectly fine afterwards." Against his better judgment, he carried on. "Was _I_ too good of a kisser? Was it much too distracting for _you_?"

She scowled. "Not at all. I didn't feel a thing. Even if we had to go undercover like that again, I wouldn't be bothered _in the least_." She stressed the last three words, ending with a poke to his chest.

Caught up in their fight, they'd turned to face each other fully. Their chests were both heaving, worked up over the other's reluctance to say how they truly felt and the slight disappointment about the others' lie.

"Good. I agree. Kissing you again wouldn't do anything for me," Gabriel fumed. "I know _I'd_ be able to keep a professional demeanor," he challenged.

"So would I. It wouldn't make me act any differently towards you after," she said softly. Riley was now aware they were breathing each other's air again. Daringly, she decided to take another step closer to Gabriel, watching his reaction. However, she was unprepared for when he did the same thing.

She gasped as he grabbed her waist, his body suddenly coming right up along hers. He leaned in and put his hot mouth on hers, and she sighed at the almost unbearable sweetness of the anticipated moment of contact. He'd secretly been dying for another chance to feel her lips under his again, as was she. It was an urgent, almost desperate kiss, and Riley immediately opened her mouth against his to allow him to take the kiss deeper.

Her pulse leapt when he reached down to cup her backside, pulling her impossibly closer to where she wanted him most. His wandering hand came back up to her waist, dipping under her shirt to graze her bare skin delicately. Gabriel started tracing circles on her lower spine with his fingertips, making her shiver at his tender touch. She arched into him and released her grip on his upper arms to circle around his neck.

Riley felt the rise and fall of his chest as their breathing grew more ragged. It felt pretty damn unprofessional at the moment. She knew she should probably move away by now. She could have blamed it on the fact that he wouldn't have let her go anyway, but that was one lie too many.

Gabriel's head was swimming in ecstasy. He bit her lip and soothed it with his tongue, coming back up to take her mouth again fully when she moaned. He would've done anything to hear that intimate sound come from her again. To his delight, he was able to elicit another from her when he ran a hand up to her bare ribs, just below the fabric of her bra, and slowly, agonizingly, back down to her front to hook his thumb on the low waistline of her borrowed shorts. Her tongue glided across the roof of his mouth, making his knees weak. He wasn't sure he'd ever be able to erase from his mind the things she was doing to him. He released her for a moment, catching his breath, but couldn't seem to leave her completely. He came back for one lingering, open-mouthed kiss, and finally, reluctantly, tore his lips away. His forehead was resting against hers, his breathing labored.

"See?" Riley started breathlessly, "Still nothing." Her freshly kissed mouth made it hard for him to take her too seriously. He peppered one last kiss onto the corner of her mouth, releasing his tight grip on her. She leaned into his cheek as he did, and was amazed to realize how cold she was once the heat of his body moved away.

"Exactly. Glad we got that sorted out," he said, his voice still thick with arousal. He stepped backwards to regain some perspective. "Let me know if you ever need reminding." He looked back over to her, swollen mouth and flushed cheeks, and ordered himself not to reach for her again.

"Yeah," she said distractedly, still dazed. She was trying hard to concentrate, but couldn't find her normal gumption. Maybe it had something to do with the way his lips had claimed hers in so heady a passion._ God, she missed his touch already. What was wrong with her? _

She caught her lip between her teeth, tearing her eyes away from his unshaven chin, and held his stare for what seemed like an eternity. Just the fact that they'd gotten a taste of each other left them hungrily craving more. Before anyone could take a step towards the other, however, the ring of the phone broke their concentration.

Gabriel hesitatingly went over to pick up the phone and answer to the park ranger. After a minute, he hung up and turned towards his partner, telling her, "Apparently the lodge party is taking place tonight. Oh, and your clothes are ready from the dryer down the road." The corners of his mouth rose, and he added, "Interestingly enough, the ranger's name is actually Sally _Bates_."

Despite the heavy atmosphere between them, she chuckled. "Does that make you Mr. Knightly then?"

"Only if you're Emma." At her scoff, he smiled.

"I'd like to think I'm not _that _judgmental, thanks." While Riley loved the character, Emma still had her flaws. "What time does this shindig start, anyway?"

"Dinner is served at six o'clock sharp. She asked me to dress nicely, 'cause apparently there's_ dancing_," he drawled with a roll of the eyes. "Same goes for you. At least I have an excuse to see you wear that dress now." His grin turned downright wicked.

She tried to ignore the way she felt her cheeks heat up and took in a shaky breath. Riley decided to focus on something other than his fiery gaze, so she glanced at the clock, seeing that it was now four thirty. "We'd best get ready soon then." He watched her walk down the hall, her tantalizing hips swaying, and gulped when he saw her hands appear out of her doorway, tossing his clothes back into his room. There she was, nearly naked again, just a room away.

He really needed to cool down. Their latest entanglement was about to blow the top of his head clean off. He shut the door to the master bedroom behind him and rummaged around for the suit he knew he must have packed. Alone with his thoughts, he started wondering how well he'd be able to keep his distance from her tonight. Gabriel knew their relationship was strictly work-related.

The problem was that he didn't know if wanted to keep it that way.

A/N: So the weekend is coming to a close, and I'm most likely going to wait a few days before I update. I'll write in my spare time, but I still have to chug away at my studies. Let me know what you thought about this intense chapter. Reviews are always appreciated: D

**Once again, special thanks to diana-of-wales for all the ideas and help! I owe you my thanks. **


	5. Chapter 5 - Chocolate Cake

**A/N: Yay! Update time! That's what these lovely weekends are made for. Thanks to all the readers who stuck with me and are still sticking with me. I've gotten an overwhelming amount of sweet reviews, and I just want to say THANK YOU. So, as a bonus, I'm going to add some links in here for the pics of what Riley's dress vaguely resembles. Enjoy!**

**Here is a link to what the dress sort of looks like:** images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSg2ua3iU2cTo2fYDzWThIrY3vI4pQVAxisAAT3bIGer2zAec0u

**_If you want an image to what Riley might look like in the dress, PM me because the link won't work when i put it on here._**

_**IMPORTANT:**_ Try not to go too much off the pictures, I couldn't find ones that would fit the description perfectly. Just try to combine the pictures with how I'll describe the dress in the story.

Rated: T (Just in case)

**Chapter 5 – Chocolate Cake**

Gabriel was at a loss for words. Utterly speechless. He couldn't even form a sentence.

Riley was waiting by the door, applying red lipstick in the hallway mirror and she hadn't noticed him yet.

He was gaping at the dress she'd finally put on. The black, sleek dress hugged against her curves tightly. The opaque black material stopped just above her chest with a low cut, and above it was lacy material that followed the neckline of the dress and covered both her arms down to her elbows. His eyes slowly made their way down to the bottom hem of the dress, which stopped at mid-thigh. She hadn't packed any high heels apparently, but she was adorning black flats that made her slightly shorter than normal.

Gabriel walked over behind her and caught her eyes in the mirror as she pressed her lips together to smooth her lipstick out. "You done checking me out?" Her grin spread across her face and her cheeks were dimpled with the same pink that had appeared after their kiss in front of the fireplace.

"Not quite yet, actually," Gabriel answered. He was remembering how it felt to have his lips on hers, hand in her hair and body pressed warm against hers. In their short time apart getting ready for the party, he found himself missing her completely and couldn't remember why this this train of thought was treacherous. In fact, he was already formulating excuses to get nearer to her as soon as possible. He grasped Riley's arm and turned her around gently, sliding his hand down her arm until her hand was in his. "I'm really liking this choice of wardrobe, Agent Neil. You're looking beautiful tonight."

"Not so bad yourself, partner." Her breath had caught in her throat, and her eyes had widened at his touch. She was surprised by the honesty she found in his voice. She still wasn't quite over what had happened yet herself. His touch, though delicate in her fingers, was sending an electrifying shock that reverberated all through her. He looked handsome as well, and she was loving the way the tux looked on him. She'd seen him in suits during missions before, but this tux was tailored perfectly for him. "You clean up nice." _Really, really nice._

While still keeping their fingers interlocked, Riley pulled up her other hand to straighten his tie, letting it linger on the warmth she could feel through the fabric of his shirt when she was done. The air seemed heavy again. In an effort to bring the situation back to normal, she spoke up. "How far is the lodge from here? Do we need to take the car?" She heard the hitch in her own voice. It wasn't like the fact that they were holding hands was affecting her at all. Not even a little.

"No," he started, his own voice low, "I only took the car before because I was carrying your laundry. Well, actually, I still need to take back your load from the dryer, so we might need to ride there." He tried not to show disappointment when she dropped both her hands and stepped out the door.

"But it's such a nice day. We can just take the laundry back tomorrow morning. I'm sure they won't mind." It was still a perfect day outside. The earlier clouds had parted. The sun was lowering in the sky, but it wasn't quite setting. She took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air and turned back to Gabriel who was gazing admiringly at her. Riley wasn't even sure she could remember what it felt like when her face wasn't flushed.

"Alright then, first thing tomorrow. It's only a short walk down the road anyway," he answered. They made their way past the driveway and heard the gravel crunch under their feet as they walked down the dirt road in silence. As the lodge came into their view, Gabriel hooked his arm into Riley's. "Looks like they're really taking this whole party thing seriously."

"Wow," Riley breathed. There was a big banner around the giant lodge announcing the anniversary party and the log building was covered in stringed lights which were barely visible in the early evening light. There was a little area set out on the lawn where the dance floor was extended. "It's a lot nicer than I thought it would be."

Gabriel moved his hand to rest against her lower back and pushed her forward from her sudden standstill. As they neared the lodge and crossed the threshold, they were greeted by Ms. Bates. The blonde woman was dressed up in red and was positively beaming. "I'm so glad you folks could come! You both look amazing. Do you like how the lodge looks? I wasn't on the decorating committee but I appreciate their hard work. They sure took a lot of time on those lights. They still might be the same ones we used from Christmas, but they look beautiful all the same. Oh, dinner should be served pretty soon. We're waiting for a couple other people from the town nearby to come. There were plenty of lodgers, you see, but the more the merrier, right?" She was talking a mile a minute and making their heads spin.

Gabriel cut her off before she started up again. "Oh yes, most definitely. Now, if you excuse us, we're just going to go check out the decorations near the dance floor." She seemed to accept this and let them be. Once out of earshot, he leaned down and whispered, "Does she even know how similar she is to the other Ms. Bates?"

Riley chuckled. "I'd rather Ms. Bates than _Norman_ Bates, at least." They both smiled. Gabriel liked that she was always ready with a good comeback. He locked their arms together again and led them to a table that was stocked with champagne glasses. They clinked their glasses together and he gave her a smoldering, dimpled smile over his glass.

Riley stared at him and watched his throat work as he sipped his drink. To hell with distracting her, she could barely even think straight at all anymore. When his mouth had last left hers, Riley knew she was in trouble. He was one of the best kissers she'd ever had the fortune to meet, and the memories of those blissful moments were consuming her mind. Her lips were still tingling, and yet the kiss had been over an hour ago. She had honestly tried to think of other things, but gave up every time he rested his hand on her.

Which kept happening all too frequently.

Before dinner started she excused herself to visit the bathroom. As she was walking through the crowd, she ran into a man who introduced himself as Christopher Pellegrino. He shook her hand, saying, "Please, call me Chris." They'd made small talk and Riley found the man to be quite charming in his own way. She learned that he'd come to visit the park for the past two weeks and was an avid hiker. After talking about his adventures for a few minutes, he finally asked about her. "Are you here with anybody?"

Riley nodded towards Gabriel, who was stuck talking to Officer Bates at the moment. "It seems I'm with him tonight," she sighed. Chris must have taken her melancholy attitude to mean that she was unhappy with her date rather than frustrated with herself.

"Boyfriend troubles?" he asked knowingly. He had a smug sort of smirk on his face, but it was not nearly as attractive as when Gabriel did the same. _Wait, she found that irritating smirk attractive? _Her mental slip, along with Chris' implication, had anxious butterflies swirling in her stomach.

"No! Oh no, not at all. We're not dating, actually…" That was as far as she got before Gabriel came up and pulled her aside. "Sorry, excuse me for a moment Chris!" she called back.

Gabriel was frowning at her with a crease in his brow, but she was glaring right back. "Gabriel, that was rude!" she protested and shook him off.

"Huh?" he asked, looking back towards Chris. "Wait a minute, you think _I_ was rude just then? You just left me over there with _her_," he paused, pointing at the talkative park ranger, "and you think _I'm_ ill-mannered?" He ran a distressed hand through his hair. Riley almost felt sorry for him. "Can you please just promise not to leave me alone like that again?"

Riley raised her eyebrows in a teasing fashion. "You've become too dependent on me, Gabriel," she said, shaking her head. "Using that poor lady as an excuse for me not to leave your sight," she sighed. When Gabriel's brow furrowed deeper and he sputtered, she continued. "You could've just told me you wanted to spend more time together." Her disapproving look almost faltered when she saw that he thought she was serious.

"I never – what? But she…and I don't want…" He broke off at last when she started laughing. He rolled his eyes at her mind games. "Very funny. I meant alone_ with her_. I'd just rather have a conversation with a woman who actually lets me participate." He tried to keep his angry glare on her, but couldn't hold a grudge when the sound of her laughter was gracing his ears. He knew she was laughing at him, but he couldn't bring himself to stay angry for very long.

"Sorry. I'll try to keep you away from her." _All to myself_. She decided not to say that last thought out loud. She wasn't jealous, but she was maybe a teeny bit possessive. After all, it wasn't like she'd met anybody else in the crowd besides Chris, and she knew Gabriel could converse with her and sound much less self-absorbed than the other man. Chris was certainly proud of his accomplishments, but he was a little_ too_ proud.

When one of the park managers announced that the food was ready, all the guests took their seats at a group of long banquet tables. Gabriel sat adjacent to Riley, waiting until he knew Ms. Bates was seated at the other end of the room before he actually plopped down. She'd talked his ear off earlier and he hadn't known how to leave her without seeming rude. When the officer had asked if he was dating Riley, he'd denied it and immediately taken the opportunity to say that he needed to check on her, thus forcing him to interrupt his partner's conversation with her new acquaintance. He only came to see Riley in the dress, after all, and certainly not to endure an evening of mindless chatter.

After the food was served and the guests around them dug in, the two partners sat in a comfortable silence while eating. Well, Gabriel was eating his meal, at least. After he'd finished he'd looked to his side to see Riley was just picking at the small pile left on her plate. "Not liking it?" he whispered.

She shook her head. "It's good. I just sort of lost my appetite," she whispered back. She was avoiding his gaze. Their silence had given her the opportunity to get lost in her thoughts, which, were obviously directed to her feelings concerning her partner.

She wanted to shake herself out of this daydream she was losing herself in. She was Gabriel's bodyguard, for crying out loud. She shouldn't be hanging on every single word he said, but she just couldn't tell if it was her imagination or not that was making it seem like Gabriel liked her. In any form at all. Usually, he teased her mercilessly and judged her over-protective ways. He was never this civil or pleasant to her. In fact, that's what convinced her that everything that was going on was in her head. Maybe he'd been right before, maybe she got too caught up with their make-out session to think straight. But that couldn't be possible either; she did _not_ like him like that. She just didn't. He was a hell of a kisser, but she wasn't supposed to get her feelings involved. If she got her feelings involved, she couldn't work to the best of her ability. She was trying with a great effort not to let that happen.

Those were the thought circulating her mind when Gabriel had asked if she was okay. After answering, she picked up her fork and pushed a mouthful through her small smile to satisfy him. He was still wearing a concerned expression, however, and moved to place his hand on her knee. "Really, Riley. Are you sure you're okay? You've been glaring at your plate like it's stolen your boyfriend for the past fifteen minutes."

She stifled a laugh. At least he knew how to bring her out of a funk. Her leg felt hot all of a sudden because he'd started rubbing small circles on the side of her knee with his thumb. She was glad he'd turned away, attentive to the servers bringing out desert plates. He probably wasn't even aware he was touching her. His fingers were moving of their own accord and wrapping around the inside of her knee, gently massaging in an effort to comfort her. His touch was both soothing and – to Riley's annoyance – slightly distracting. He either wasn't paying any attention at all or was doing the exact opposite, because he started tracing pattern further up the inside of her leg, which then transitioned to tracing a line from her knee to the hem of her skirt. Well, it would've been her skirt had she not immediately scooped his hand with her own and squeezed hard to snap him out of it. "Ow! What?"

"You should pay a little less attention to stuffing your face and more to what your hands are doing," she scowled, giving him a menacing look that would've made any other man run.

Gabriel, she was learning, was no ordinary man. "Sorry. I promise I'll make a better effort next time." He gave her a shit-eating grin and laughed when she smacked his arm. He just winked suggestively at her glare.

"What makes you think there'll be a next time?" she scoffed.

"What makes you think there won't?" he retorted.

"Not a chance," she'd said just a little louder than their steady whispers.

"Alright, alright, calm down," he shushed her.

"Make me."

He couldn't help the glance to her mouth. She'd seen the look and her eyes widened slightly, pupils darkening. _Why had they sat so close, anyways?_ she thought.

He was sitting so close he could see a few light freckles on her face. His resolve was waning quickly. "I can certainly do that, agent."

No. They weren't doing this again, and certainly not in this crowded room full of strangers. She tried for light and playful again. "Well you can certainly shut me up by doing one, really sweet thing."

"And what would that be?" he asked impatiently.

She leaned closer to whisper in his ear. "I would so love it if you could be a gentlemen," she paused to draw out the moment, "…and get me a nice slice of chocolate cake from the desert table." Seeing his forlorn expression, she sat back and laughed, adding, "Please?"

He just rolled his eyes and obliged. When he returned to the table and handed her the cake, her face brightened. He made a note in the future that he'd have to bake her a chocolate cake for her birthday, seeing as she was practically devouring the piece in front of her.

"You've got some fudge on your face."Riley turned to him and he could see a chocolate smudge across her cheek. He took the opportunity to use his thumb and wipe up the fudge sauce. He was about to bring it back to his mouth when she caught his hand first and took it back. He tried to swallow past the lump in his throat when she took his thumb into her own mouth and licked it clean. It happened in span of a few seconds, but it felt like all time had slowed down to Gabriel.

She released his hand then and said, "You tried to take the mac and cheese off my face the other night like that. Quit trying to steal my food."

"Maybe I wanted a taste. You make it look delicious." She cut him off with a look and hurried to finish her cake, sliding the plate away from him. She chose not to reply to his suggestive comments while taking extra care to eat less sloppily.

A while after desert, they'd started arguing again over this and that. They were so caught up in fighting with each other that they didn't notice everyone getting up and moving to the dance floor. The guests were mostly mingling and not paying attention to the couple fighting at the tables. Everybody began dancing when the music played and the partners finally realized the party had moved elsewhere. Both were too fed up with one another to do anything about it though.

Not too long after they sat brooding and staring at the happy crowd, Riley saw Chris making his way to her. He offered his arm to her and asked her to dance, which she accepted without so much as a glance at Gabriel. She deserved to enjoy herself at this party.

"You didn't look like you were having much fun over there," he observed. Then, he puffed out his chest. "I knew I could get you to cheer up if you danced with me. Besides, it's much more fun over here on the dance floor than over with that chum in the corner."

Riley looked over to "that chum" to see him staring out of focus, not looking all that upset about his missing partner. She turned back to Chris and danced closer to him. Maybe she'd get a reaction out of Gabriel yet as he was looking at the dance floor determinedly.

What Riley didn't know was that Gabriel had already accessed Chris's phone and started messing with all of his personal settings, changing contact names and lock-screen passwords so that Chris would think he'd picked up someone else's phone by mistake. The nerve of that guy. Couldn't he see that Riley was with him? Well not _with-with_ him, but they'd arrived together, so that should've counted for something.

Gabriel rose to make his way to Riley and he was just a few steps away when a hand at his arm swung him around. He calmed his natural fighting instincts as he realized it was Office Bates who'd stopped him and tried to mask his grimace with a smile. She smiled back to him, asking if he'd had a moment to dance.

He didn't have the chance to say no as she grabbed hold of him and started swaying to the music. She made him very uncomfortable for some reason, but he was making an effort not to be rude to her. "Hello, Gabe. I hope you're having a good time tonight. I was just looking around for a good dance partner, and when I saw you – boy did I think I was lucky! You can call me Sally by the way."

"Okay, Sally. I'm having a good night." He said as he continued to make small talk with her. She was at least letting him contribute to the conversation somewhat, but he really didn't plan on chatting with her for too much longer. He glanced over at Riley. She was smiling at her dance partner, but something didn't seem quite right. _She was fake smiling_, he realized. Now, if he could just think of an excuse to get to her…

"I'm actually quite relieved that you told me you were unattached to that woman," Sally said when she caught Gabriel staring. "I was scared I wouldn't have the chance to sneak a dance in with you at all tonight."

Gabriel cleared his throat when she winked, but a sudden idea popped into his head. "Oh, I never said we were unattached. I just said we weren't dating. Actually, we're happily married." Oh, Riley was so going to kill him.

Sally blushed. "Oh forgive me, Gabe. The way I saw you two fighting at the tables earlier had me thinking differently. Well I am glad I got to dance with you. She's a lucky woman to have you." She smiled cheekily and patted his arm. "You should go steal her from that man - Chris, I think his name was. He comes here all the time trying to convince women to go hiking with him. I'm sure you don't have anything to worry about, though, seeing as your wife loves you." With that, she graciously left him alone on the floor.

Gabriel was definitely starting to get worked up by now, as they were not in fact legally attached. He might have a small reason to worry about his date being stolen by a womanizer. Not that Riley couldn't take care of herself, but she had been looking uncomfortable a minute ago. He looked at her again and saw a tight-lipped smile. Maybe she needed an excuse to leave Chris. He justified his next actions with that reasoning in mind.

He went to Chris and Riley and interrupted whatever they were talking about. "May I steal my wife for a dance?" Riley's eyes went wide. Surprisingly, though, she went along with it quite eagerly, letting go of Chris to reach for Gabriel's outstretched hand. Maybe their dance was going worse than she thought.

Chris frowned when she moved away. Gabriel never thought he would see a grown man actually pout. With his shaggy brown hair and neatly-trimmed beard, Gabriel thought Chris looked more like a hobo than an outdoorsman. "Hey! You didn't tell me you were married," Chris scowled at Riley.

"Well you never gave me the chance. You were too busy telling me about your latest trip remember?" She smiled sweetly. Only Gabriel recognized the insult. "It was nice talking to you, Chris."

"You guys can't possibly be married. Everyone saw you bickering. You don't need to make excuses just to please this guy either, Riley. You can still dance with me if you like." He waggled his eyebrows in a truly unattractive fashion. He just wasn't getting it.

"Thanks, but I'm going with my husband now. I haven't gotten the chance to dance with him yet." With that she grabbed Gabriel's jaw and leaned it down to hers for a quick peck on the cheek, hoping that would be convincing enough. Chris just rolled his eyes and was about to let something even more unintelligent come out of his mouth, so Riley grabbed Gabriel close to her again.

She looked into his eyes for a split second, asking permission. At his almost imperceptible nod, she fused their lips together once more. This sort of thing was beginning to be a regular occurrence for them. Gabriel had stood stock-still during her small, unexpected peck before. He grew annoyed at the way Chris dismissed them so easily though, and he would've taken her into his own arms if she hadn't moved quicker.

Riley was trying to make the kiss look convincing enough for Chris while still being acceptably decent in public. It was a rather chaste kiss as compared to their last few, and it lasted barely five seconds before they separated. Thankfully, they caught sight of Chris moving deeper into the crowd and away from them. "Thanks," Riley breathed.

"Anytime," Gabriel quipped. Riley furrowed her brow. He wasn't his usual mindless self. He really did seem unaffected this time. Not that it was a spectacular kiss by any means, but Riley couldn't bring herself to be quite as nonchalant as he was acting.

She followed him when he grabbed two more champagne glasses. Each agent downed the glasses quickly and somberly. She was excited before when he came to her rescue. He'd been intent on dancing with her before, eager to take her away from that self-absorbed hiker who hadn't moved his hands off her waist since they'd started dancing.

She moved to the part of the dance floor that was outside where she could see the stringed lights better against the darkening sky. After shrugging out of his jacket, Gabriel followed and caught her forearm, turning her into his embrace to sway to the slow song that had started up. Gooseflesh arose where his hand was scorching her, and so she shook him off to place her arms around his shoulders. It wasn't any better after that, though, because he placed his warm hands around her waist. She suppressed a shudder and looked away from him. "Listen, Gabriel. I'm sorry I used you to get away from Chris like that," she began. "I promised I was going to be more professional."

"Sorry?" Gabriel questioned. She heard him laugh and brought her eyes back to his. "You should be sorry." She was frowning, awaiting his outburst, when he tugged his arms round her waist more tightly. "That was the shortest kiss yet, and it was nothing as compared to before."

She couldn't tell if he was teasing or not, for he kept his face neutral. "Hey, I'd like to think it was just fine. It certainly wasn't mind blowing, but it wasn't bad," she scowled. He was trying to wind her up, she was convinced now. "Are you saying I'm a bad kisser, then?"

He gave her a disapproving look. "Of course not. You're just fine," he sniffed. Secretly Gabriel knew he was getting to her. "I mean, you said there "wouldn't be a next time," so you won't get to prove that point to me, obviously. I guess that last kiss was _okay_." He knew he'd gotten under her skin when he felt her arms clench around his shoulders.

He felt himself being dragged downward when she fisted her fingers in his hair. He smiled and met her halfway – he couldn't not smile at his partner's eager-to-prove-him-wrong attitude. It really worked in his favor sometimes.

Thankfully, none of the other dancers had made their way out to the outdoor floor, so she made out with him unabashedly. Gabriel shoved one of his hands through her soft hair, bringing her mouth ever closer to his. The other hand that was at her hip fisted into the thin fabric of the dress. This was an article of clothing he was very fond of. When he removed his hand from her hair, it traveled down the length of her dress to toy with the bottom lining. He placed his palm flat against the smooth skin of her thigh with his fingertips lightly grazing the skin nearest to the hem of the lace dress.

In an effort to prove Gabriel wrong, Riley was teasing him with her mouth. She slipped her tongue past his lips and traced his tongue with hers. She really knew how to make him hot, and he hadn't even noticed the quiet moan he'd let out. The hand not running through his hair framed his jawline and tilted his head at a more comfortable angle. She was shorter in the shoes she was wearing, and the greater height difference wasn't quite working to her advantage. She stepped closer to him so that she could stand on her tippy toes to meet his ravenous mouth, moaning herself when the movement caused his lower hand to inadvertently tighten his grip on her upper thighs. He pulled her weight into his arms and he was nearly lifting her off the ground. "Any complaints?" she asked against his mouth.

"None at all," he replied out of breath. He wasn't quite finished, though, and took another minute to savor the taste of her mouth under his. They were still attached when Gabriel placed her feet back down on the ground. He released her finally, but still held her close. They hadn't finished their dance yet, after all.

He spoke up first. "I have to say, I was still right."

Riley turned to him, eyes still a bit glassy and soft. "What – what do you mean?" she asked, anxious about the serious tone of his voice. There was no way he didn't like that kiss. He'd just said there was nothing to complain about…right?

He held her gaze for a beat to build suspense.

"The chocolate cake _did_ taste delicious," he raised his eyebrows and made a show of licking his lips. Her mouth was still infused with the flavor, and it was part of what made the kiss completely irresistible this time. He decided that he'd always be reminded of her when he ate chocolate cake in the future.

Riley wrinkled her nose and let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in. "I still don't see why you couldn't get your own," she mumbled, but just rested her head on his chest. The song was coming to an end soon, but Gabriel thought that he could probably stay in this single moment in time forever. Her hands wrapped around his waist, and he hugged Riley to him in response. His heart felt like it was being tugged out of his chest when he heard her sigh. "You're really going to have to stop doing that, you know," she whispered.

"What, kissing you senseless?" he breathed.

"No, stealing my food like that," she replied. Then, he heard her sudden intake of breath as she fumbled over her words. "I didn't mean- yes, that too. Definitely. That's exactly what I meant." She hated when Gabriel made her look silly. "We're still complete professionals though, so it wasn't a problem," Riley stated more to herself than him, reminding herself that they were to keep a metaphorical distance between them.

_Thank god it wasn't a literal distance_, he thought.

"Good, then. Glad that's settled." Gabriel had forgotten all about the point of the last kiss. He just knew that he needed to keep finding ways to kiss her in the future, Lillian and her orders of professionalism be damned. He could still maintain a working relationship with Riley, only he'd get the side benefit of stealing her lips every now and then. At least, for as long as they were able to stay in the park.

"Great," Riley answered. She wasn't so sure she wanted everything to go back to normal either. The moment they headed back into work, everything was sure to change and their perfect moments in the park would be shattered. She hoped it took a long time for the Cyber Unit to give them the "OK" to come back down to D.C.

Besides, she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep her feelings strictly professional. He really did have a gift when it came to kissing her.

Both of them were swaying to the music, not noticing the time pass. Before they knew it, they'd danced with each other all night, talking to each other all the while. They started to leave once the lodge managers turned off the music and thanked the guests for coming.

They'd had a pretty good night together, all in all. Gabriel took her hand in his as they walked up the dirt road to the cabin. They paused at one of the outlooks to see the valley below painted with bright moonlight. They could see all the stars from here. "This is much better than in the city. I haven't seen a sky full of stars in years," Riley said.

Gabriel agreed. "I used to love this sort of view. Sometimes, I hack the satellite pictures up there," he pointed to the sky, "and I stargaze even when the city lights block the view." They stayed until their necks hurt from the odd positions.

"We should stargaze on the roof of the back patio when we get back," she suggested. Gabriel smiled down at her. Nothing could make this day better.

And that, of course, was when he heard a rustle coming from a bush nearby them. Riley turned around at the noise and pulled her gun out from somewhere. They heard leaves crunching and twigs snapping as a dark form started running towards them.

_How could the guardsman have found them already?_

The situation didn't look good. They were cornered at the steep edge of the lookout with nowhere to run. As the figure stepped out into the moonlight, both agents held up their guns in defense.

It seemed they weren't going to enjoy a nice walk back together after all.

A/N: I Know I'm mean! But, I had to leave the chapter there. I promise there are better chapters to come, and I'll try to get them up when I can. I hope you're liking the story so far. I wasn't the happiest with how this chapter turned out, but let me know what you guys think of it so far. Also – did you like Riley's dress? I certainly want one like it for myself.

**Thanks once again to diana_of_wales for all the help** – I couldn't publish this story without you.  
Also, thanks to all the wonderful reviewers who I especially appreciate for taking the time to tell me our thoughts. All readers are lovely!


	6. Chapter 6 - Pancakes

A/N: Yay! Update time. I hope I haven't left you all worrying too much. You'll be pleased with this chapter's events, I promise. Okay, I hope. Thanks for taking the time to read and review this, my lovelies! :D

**Disclaimer:** If I owned them, the characters would be doing what they do in this chapter every episode. if only! Sigh.

Rated: T

Chapter 6 – Pancakes

Riley and Gabriel held their breaths and watched the figure barrel towards them. The figure, however, kept getting smaller as it came closer to them. The agents gave each other a quick glance and holstered their weapons as the creature came traipsing right up to them, wagging its tail. Riley let out a relieved laugh and leaned down to pet the Labrador that was now threatening to push her over where she crouched. "That was a close call," she laughed to Gabriel.

"Whose dog is running around at this time of night?" Gabriel asked. His heart was still racing. He'd completely let his guard down when they were stargazing, and was not at all looking forward to an armed confrontation on his "vacation." Not to mention he wasn't ready to leave the secluded cabin that the agents had made themselves comfortable in.

After holstering his weapon, he leaned down to pat the dog's head as well. The lab sniffed his hand and licked Gabriel's palm. Its nose barreled into his chest and made him fall to the ground, making Riley laugh even harder. "Looks like we have an affectionate new friend," Gabriel grouched.

He brought his hands around the dog's collar and searched for the tag. "Ivy," he read aloud. "Where did you come from, girl?" The dog made a pleasant sound and turned over so that her stomach could be scratched. Gabriel just smiled and obliged.

Riley watched him with a smile on her face as well. She wouldn't have taken her partner to be a "dog person." Honestly, he didn't seem like the type of person who would like to own any pet at all. She was amazed at how much attention he was already giving to this pup.

"When we get back to the cabin, I'll call the lodge and tell them we've found a dog. I don't see anyone coming to look for her at this time of night. Besides, she doesn't look like she would mind staying the night with us," she stated.

Gabriel looked up and caught Riley's smile. He nodded and stood with the dog, taking Riley's elbow instead of the dog's collar when the Ivy started automatically trialing behind them. "At least the nights are finally getting warmer up here. I thought it would be freezing." He thought about how the weather had changed earlier before they'd left to go to the party. The sun had finally peeked out of the dark clouds from before and the nice weather hadn't stopped since.

"Yeah, good thing I didn't need a jacket. I would have regretted wearing this," Riley said as she pointed to the thin, lacy material covering her arms. There was still a slight chill to the air, but it wasn't nearly as cold as it had been this morning.

"I wouldn't have," Gabriel mumbled, giving her a quick once over. He was surprised when she laughed instead of hitting him. "Wonderful choice of outfit, by the way. I'm going to have to demand that we go on more mission where we have to dress up. Lillian won't mind, right?"

Riley smiled and raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, she'd really love it. Just like she always loves your charming, take-charge attitude." She rolled her eyes, thinking of the time when Gabriel locked a suspect in the interrogation room and turned off all the cameras to scare him into talking. Lillian had been furious. Not only was she mad because he'd done it of his own volition, but because the suspect soon died from vicious nanobots in his blood, which had been placed there earlier by the killer. Lillian never seemed to like it when Gabriel had his own suggestions on how to run things.

"Wait, did you say I'm charming?" Gabriel asked after a minute. He nudged her elbow that was still locked in his. "My, my Agent Neil. Are you finally succumbing to my alluring masculinity?" He gave her a mock-smoldering look to annoy her.

"Yeah, right. The only one who finds you charming is Ivy," she said with a pause after the dog started nudging him to pet her again, so they stopped walking to oblige the dog. "You know, she might like you more than I do," she teased with a smirk on her face. "And you're going to end up liking her more than me."

Gabriel turned away from her mocking to lean down to Ivy again. The dog was so sweet, and he could take some affection in this form any day. He hadn't had a dog since he was little, and the puppy looked very similar to his old one. It was a blonde lab with big brown eyes and fluffy fur. He was a sucker when it came to them. As if Ivy read his thoughts, she started licking his face with a big, slobbery tongue.

Gabriel stood up and wiped his mouth off. "I don't know about that, Riley," he started. "You're a much better kisser." He grinned in satisfaction when she blushed. "I'm going to have to brush my teeth twice after that one, Ivy," he looked down to the dog. Ivy just wagged her tail.

Still red in the face, Riley stopped talking and started walking again in embarrassment. They were almost to the cabin anyways, so her partner and the dog sped up to match her pace. Changing the subject, she told Gabriel, "Remember, you have to switch your stuff out into the other bedroom. The big bed is mine tonight."

His shoulders slumped. "Oh yeah." He thought about when he had to scoop up the family of mice in one of her shirts earlier and place it in the woods. He'd been grossed out the whole time. One thing he was not a fan of was mice; they were pests and shouldn't be around human houses. However, he wasn't cruel enough to kill the sleeping rodents, so he just left them far away from where his partner was sleeping. "How was the other room, anyway? Any squeaking in the walls?"

Riley over at his seemingly nonchalant expression. "Nope. I slept fine. It does still smell like mice though," she said, wrinkling her nose. She watched his expression falter for a moment. She didn't know why she felt the need to placate him, but she added, "I think you got rid of any and all extra houseguests, though."

He nodded. They were approaching the cabin now. The grass was already wet with dew when they started trudging across the moonlit lawn. Ivy was still following them, so they took it as a sign that she was indeed staying the night. They stepped through the front door and let the dog past, both smiling when the dog immediately settled in front of the empty fireplace, ready to sleep on the rug.

"Let's move our stuff," Riley stated, heading down the hall in front of Gabriel. He watched her backside as he made a quick call to the lodge, sad to see the dress go. He really was determined to get her into dresses more often. They could go undercover again, maybe at a fancy restaurant or –

Gabriel stopped in his tracks before entering his room. _He could just ask her out on a date._

He took a deep breath. He wasn't supposed to think those sorts of thoughts. _Idiot! _

Gabriel had just been telling himself earlier that he was only finding excuses to touch her, maybe get a taste of her lips here and there. The idea was certainly incredibly enticing, but he wasn't supposed to ask for more. He _couldn't_ ask for more. That would be crossing the metaphorically line they'd drawn, promising professionalism.

Professionalism, professionalism, professionalism. Was that all that mattered anymore? He almost growled aloud at his own betraying thoughts.

He jumped when he heard her door swing open suddenly behind him. He whirled around to see her barefoot, jewelry off, but dress still on. "What's up?" he asked. He was still reeling from the track his mind had been on.

"Can you help me out of this?" Riley asked, head tilted in question. When Gabriel's eyes raised and he opened his mouth, she rolled her eyes and cut him off. "I _meant_ can you unzip me?" She ground out the words in frustration with herself.

He just nodded, incapable of speech. He was incapable of thought too, apparently, for his mind went blank when she turned and lifted her hair out of the way, allowing him to open the back of the dress. He steadied his hands and grabbed the zipper, dragging it down as slow as he dared. He gulped when he saw her bare back – no bra visible. Jeez, this was just torture.

Riley was having just as hard a time. He hadn't completely steadied his hands and she was able to feel his fingertips grazing her skin as the zipper went down. Hopefully he hadn't noticed the goosebumps that she felt rising on her back. She heard him gulp when the dress was fully unzipped, and remembered that the dress already had a built in bra, with no need to wear an actual one underneath. She had to hold back a smile, though, because she knew this was probably exciting him to no end.

He'd had trouble keeping his hands off of her for the entire night. This should have been some sort of a treat for him. She wasn't one to let Gabriel have too much fun though, so she whirled around to see his face one last time before closing the door.

What she saw there packed a punch straight into her gut. His eyes seemed to bore right through her, eyeing the dress as if it were something he was about to tear off with his teeth. He brought his eyes back to hers, both darkened and serious. She cleared her throat before offering her thanks quickly and retreating back into her room.

She sighed and took the dress the rest of the way off. How were they ever going to survive the week?

Riley found some of the clean clothes neatly stacked on her dresser and shrugged them on. This time, she went for longer pajama shorts and short sleeved top. It was still quite warm in the cabin, but she wasn't going to wear shorts around him and add fuel to the fire. Not that Gabriel couldn't control himself around her, but given how they acted the last time she wore shorts around him, she just figured it would be better if they were both more fully-clothed. Gathering her suitcase and clothing, she opened the door to move her things into the big bedroom.

She walked into the open door to see Gabriel resting on the bed in the shorts he'd loaned her earlier, and only those shorts. It looked like she was the only one making the effort to use the excuse of clothing as a sort of barrier between them. However, she just couldn't complain now, seeing his bare torso on display. She started chewing on her nail, but was caught staring when he opened his eyes and smirked at her. _Bastard_. He was probably waiting to catch her peeking. "What took you so long, partner?"

"I had to repack all my clothes, sorry," she answered and set her things on the other side of the room.

He got up and moved his belongings, returning to find her already curled up with the television on. "Anymore Lost reruns?" he asked with hopefulness in his voice.

"No, but Once Upon A Time is on," she said. She laughed at his frown. "Come on, it's not that bad." He said nothing but sat down on the bed anyways. They got talking about the show, with Riley explaining everything that was going on. "Ruby used to be my favorite character," she said, pointing out the particular character.

He agreed. She was the prettiest character, at least. He looked over at Riley, completely absorbed in her guilty-pleasure show. He would much rather watch his partner's face than any show, though. It was another instance where he was caught off-guard, able to see her relaxed and enjoying herself. She wasn't even hiding how much she liked the show.

Gabriel heard the dog making noises in the kitchen, though, so he tore his eyes away from the agent next to him and went to check on Ivy. When he approached her, she was still sleeping on the rug, paws twitching. "Looks like somebody's having dreams," he whispered. He turned away from the dog and got a glass of water for himself, bringing another into the bedroom for Riley.

She was under the covers now. The room did seem chillier, so he lifted the blankets up as well. At her glare, he just handed her the water glass. "I'm cold, too," he insisted. He supposed it couldn't stay warm forever. They continued to watch television in the dark room, silent and tired from the night's events.

The last thing Gabriel remembered before his eyes closed was hearing the pitter-patter of the dog's paws wandering down the hallway.

* * *

The room was dark, save for the moonlight washing over the bed. Gabriel lifted his head to see Riley had fallen asleep with the remote still in her hand. Carefully as he could, he eased it out of her hand and turned the TV off. He watched her sleeping face for a moment, stricken by how beautiful her face looked when the moonlight was gracing her features. He delicately reached over to move the hair out of her face. How was it even humanly possible to be as gorgeous as she was?

Gabriel lifted out of the bed as quietly as possible and tiptoed across the hall to find his bed in the other room. Jumping back, he realized that his bed already had someone in it. Ivy must have pushed the door to his room open and decided to make herself at home in the comfy bed. He scratched his head. There was no way he could fit on the bed now, especially since Ivy wouldn't make a move when he tried to wake her up.

He glanced back towards his partner's bedroom. Surely she wouldn't mind if he spent the night in the big bed with her, right? There was certainly enough room, and he would stay over on his side all night. He decided he was too tired to really care all that much, and tiptoed back across the hall, easing under the covers.

Sharing the bed wasn't what he had planned, but he was going to count his blessings and accept it.

* * *

The early morning light filtered through the window of the large room. Riley felt incredibly warm when she awoke, and tried to shift the blanket off of her, but stopped when she realized it wasn't a blanket.

She opened her eyes to find herself staring directly into Gabriel's bare chest. His arms were wrapped around her tightly, with his head atop hers and lips in her hair. She watched the steady rise and fall of his chest for a moment and determined he was still sleeping, so she relaxed a bit. Her hands were pinned between their chests and his legs were entwined with hers_. Had they been snuggling together? All night?_

She tried not to have a mini panic attack. She was wrapped up pretty cozily with her partner. Honestly, she shouldn't have been complaining because it actually wasn't all that bad. In fact, she was more nervous that he would wake up soon.

She was getting a close up of his body in this position; she was closer than she ever had been with him before, and she could feel every hard curve of his body. She used her fingers to lightly trace down his chest, feeling how completely smooth his skin was. Her heart was racing, but she suddenly wanted nothing more than to snuggle back down in the crook of his neck and go back to sleep. So, she did.

Not five minutes after she fell asleep, however, it was Gabriel's turn to wake up. He automatically tightened his arms around her and drew her closer to his chest. His eyes opened with a start and he realized who he was holding onto. He looked down to see her body pressed up tightly against his. He tried to move his arms, but heard her mumble something.

He drew back far enough to look into her blinking, sleepy-ridden eyes. Both took a moment to stare at the other. Weak smiles were exchanged, and they set their heads on the pillows adjacent to each other. "Good morning," Riley spoke up. Her voice was still thick with sleep.

"Good morning," he answered with an even rougher voice. He wasn't entirely sure it had to with his slumber, though. He was just glad her legs were entangled with his lower thighs instead of resting higher up. "How'd you sleep?" he asked.

"Just fine, thanks," she gave him a heartwarming smile. She was talking in a hushed whisper because their heads were still only a small distance from each other, seeing as neither was eager to move apart. "And yourself?"

He gave her a sheepish look, which promoted her to question him further. "Why'd you stay in here, anyways?" Her brow furrowed, and an adorable pout formed on her mouth.

He looked at her lips as he answered. "The dog thought it'd be great to steal my spot on the bed." At her disbelieving look, he tried to explain. "Listen, she pushed through my door in the middle of the night. It's a smaller bed, and when I tried to push her over to one side, she wouldn't move."

Riley rolled her eyes. "Sounds like you put a lot of effort in trying to move her." Her heart was doing a funny sort of rhythm because his eyes wandered down to her lips again. She resolutely ignored the look and pressed on. "I can't believe you're putting the blame on that poor dog."

This got his attention and he snapped his eyes back up defensively. "_That poor dog_," he mimicked, "is heavy and wouldn't budge. Besides, I didn't think you'd mind terribly if I shared the bed. Not that I intended to end up like this – I did _try_ to stay on my side of the bed." He used a hand to quickly gesture to their position and then placed it down on her lower back again, finding it warm in the spot where her shirt had ridden up. He felt her shiver.

"Well, next time, try harder," she warned. Her voice lacked any real conviction, though, because he started tracing circles on her lower back. She could stay in this position, completely tangled up with him, all day. Riley was warm from sleep and her limbs felt as heavy as his did, and she knew it would be all too easy to fall back asleep again. She knew they wouldn't be able to, though, because they heard the sound of a loud knock at the door reverberating throughout the cabin.

Gabriel moved like he was about to get up to answer the door. Riley quieted the voice in her head that felt disappointed. "Why don't I just make it up to you right now?" She heard something in his voice though, and had an inkling about what he was about to do next. Her head snapped up in hopeful anticipation. S_napped up involuntarily_, she would tell herself later.

Instead of moving away and answering the door, he leaned back down and shortened the distance between their lips.

He placed his mouth on her warm, awaiting lips and sighed. her sleepy mind hadn't the slightest intention of fighting him this time. Riley moved her arms out from between them and wrapped them around his muscular back to bring him closer into her embrace, fingers resting below his bare shoulder blades. It was impossible to try and fight the need to have him this close to her again.

To further deepen the kiss, he rolled her onto her back with their legs still entangled. Gabriel pushed easily past her lips and tangled his tongue with hers. He was taking his time, working her mouth slowly and tortuously, and so very sweetly. His hand moved down to shift one of her thighs so he could settle himself atop her more comfortably. His whole weight pressed down on her body, but Riley felt herself craving the sweet pressure.

He wasn't happy that she chose to wear longer pants, but that didn't mean he couldn't still attain skin contact. His hand came from around her thigh back up to run under her shirt, stopping at her ribs. He traced light patterns on the skin below her bra, teasing her with sensitive touches. The tantalizing skin under her shirt was warmer than anything, and he could feel her body practically thrumming with enthusiasm as she arched into him.

He tried desperately to tamp down the urge to remove her shirt completely, reminding himself that he'd only planned on giving her a quick smooch. His intent was to distract her from directing her anger at him, but as soon as he'd touched her mouth, he'd totally lost his mind.

Neither of them realized how much they were enjoying their intimacy with each other. Gabriel was losing himself a little and started rucking her shirt up anyways. He'd gotten it up far enough so that their bare stomachs were resting against each other, but the shirt was still pinned in place because he didn't want to lift his lips from her mouth quite so soon. So, he just decided to leave the shirt where it was. He honestly hadn't planned to go _that _far when he started kissing her, anyways.

Not that this type of close proximity ever worked out for either of them in the way they planned. Panting hard, Riley was the one who tore her mouth away first, but she moved her head aside when he started trailing his mouth down her jawline to give him easier access to her neck. She was going to tell him to slow down, but he words died in her mouth as soon as he hit the sweet spot at the dip in her shoulder.

_Wait, what were they doing?_

The question kept flitting through her mind, but she would forget it instantly. She tried to whisper his name hoarsely. When Gabriel heard her, his mouth came back to hers for another drugging kiss, and he ran a hand through her hair before quickly stealing her lips one last time. His lower abdomen was starting to act up, so he knew he needed to extract himself from her.

He used his elbows to rise up and rolled onto his own back for a moment. He sat up slowly, trying his hardest not to look back at her. However, when Gabriel stood up, he looked at his blushing partner laid out on the bed. Shirt ridden up, hair messy, and lips swollen, she certainly was a sight. _An incredibly, beautiful sight._

He'd also moved away because the knocking was getting louder and interrupting his dangerous thoughts about his partner.

He supposed he should tend to the visitor, so he made to move out of the room, showing off his dimples quickly and saying, "Consider that my apology." His hands were clenched tightly in order to keep from reaching for her again, though. He begrudgingly forced himself to move, and left the room to answer the door.

Riley just lay there speechlessly. Her pulse was sky-rocketing and she was having trouble catching her breath. He'd just kissed her like he was born to do it, completely shattering her control. They had nearly… He had almost… How in the world was _that_ professional?

And what had he been apologizing for?

She hated that she lost all perspective around him. She hadn't the faintest idea of what they were talking about before. She looked towards where he'd gone and heard voices in the living room. She sat up and ran a hand through her hair, adjusting her clothing. She was filled with warmth again just thinking about the way he'd waken her up.

"Riley," he called suddenly. Gabriel's voice had a tense edge to it. "Your _friend_ is here."

Riley frowned. What kind of _friend_ interrupted the best morning wake-up call of her life? A small part of her wanted to deny that it was, but the fact that she was close to calling her partner back and kicking out the untimely guest had her knowing otherwise. What in the world had gotten into her?

She padded out to the living room and hid a grimace. It was Chris from the night before. Chris looked up to her with a sleazy sort of smile of his face at her rumpled clothes. She had the sudden urge to cover herself with a bathrobe, but remained still. "What's the matter?" she asked the men.

"Chris here says he lost his dog last night, and he's been looking for her. The lodge told him that we'd picked her up." Gabriel was hiding a grimace on his face, too. Reluctantly, he got up to retrieve Ivy from the other room. "Lucky for you, she ran into us last night."

Chris looked at the dog that was brought out with a frown, and Ivy put her tail in between her legs.

"She's always running off, the darn dog. I wanted her to accompany me on my newest hike today," he said. Riley saw him puff out his chest again, and readied herself for another long, boastful story. Chris started telling Gabriel about his outdoor adventures, boring her partner in much the same way as she had been last night. "Anyways, today's hike is pretty risky. I've decided I'm going to try out the old trail on the other side of the nearest mountain. The old thing was never finished, but I'm going to scope it out."

Riley raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "Isn't that dangerous? Does the lodge know about your plans?" She hardly doubted what he was doing was legal by any means.

"Oh, what are you my mother?" He growled rudely. "I can do anything I want. It's the wilderness- it's all dangerous! I can't wait to tell them, and I will _after_, that I was the first one to successfully climb the other side. They'll probably put my picture up in the lodge, or something."

Gabriel rolled his eyes. "Well if you can't wait, you better get a move-on. Just be careful with the dog." As Gabriel was ushering Chris out the door, he heard the obnoxious man talking to the dog.

"Like I'm taking you with me _anywhere_ today," Ivy was told. Riley heard it as well, and her heart went out to the poor creature. She couldn't believe a man like that would own a dog so sweet.

"Thanks again, by the way," she said to Gabriel. "For, um, saving me from having to dance with him last night," she sputtered. He just gave her an affectionate look and smiled. He put his arm around her shoulders and walked her into the kitchen.

"Anytime. C'mon, I'll make you some breakfast." He didn't make any move to put a shirt on, and instead reached for the ingredients in the cupboard.

Riley just watched him move around wordlessly. Pancakes were a fine choice of breakfast food by him, and she was delighted when a big bag of chocolate chips appeared from somewhere. She was so happy that he was the kind of guy who took the time to find out her favorite foods, and she found herself thinking about how Gabriel really could be incredibly sweet. _Charming, a great kisser, and makes me breakfast_, she thought. No wonder he was so easy to fall in love with.

Wait.

_Love_?

Shit.

A/N: Yup, I left it there. Do you hate me? As always, reviews are appreciated! :D Do you have any predictions for what's going to happen next? Thanks to diana_of_wales for everything she does for me.


	7. Chapter 7 - Warmth

A/N: Okay, so last time you guys were amazing and I received some INCREDIBLY sweet reviews. I wanted to let you lovely readers and reviewers know that I appreciate every single love note (review) that you give me. It makes me wanna cry, but it also makes me feel like my writing is worthwhile. I'll try not to let you down! And also, I'm REALLY sorry for the delay in the update. I didn't have a lot of free time this weekend to write, but I'm gonna make it up by hopefully giving you chapter eight early.

Rated: T sort of…slightly M

Disclaimer: I will own these characters when pigs fly. _*tries furiously to attach wings to said animal*_

_**HOW TO READ THIS CHAPTER: Go to rainymood dot com for the sound of the rainstorm, open up a fireplace "episode" on Netflix to hear the crackling of the fire, and open up a Frank Sinatra mix on YouTube. You will totally get the effect of what Riley and Gabriel are hearing. ENJOY.**_

CHAPTER 7 - Warmth

Riley paused her actions, her pancake-holding fork halfway to her lips and eyes wide.

She hadn't meant to think that at all. Love? This wasn't love. It was obviously a Freudian slip. It wasn't like she could be in love just three days after finally kissing her partner, right? It couldn't be as simple as that.

She thought of their partnership, or rather their friendship, over the past year. They fought and teased each other all the time, and could never get along. She supposed she did enjoy it though, and it was nice to have someone who gave as good as he got. She certainly could be a match for him in that respect. And, he could be surprisingly nice to her. He was also a hell of a kisser, and she had no doubt he'd be great in bed, especially if their morning wake-up kiss was any indication. Her train of thought derailed for a moment, thinking of all the potential they had together.

"Something wrong with my pancakes?" Gabriel asked. He'd caught her staring off into space with a sort of lost look on her face. She didn't answer for a moment, so he waved a hand in front of her face.

She jumped when he neared her and turned red. "What?" It was times like this when she was incredibly thankful that he couldn't read minds.

He furrowed his brow. "You looked sick a minute ago. Is something wrong? Is it about the guardsman?" He looked genuinely concerned. Riley was hit again with the realization that Gabriel really did care about her, at least a little.

But, she was also reminded about the guardsman. Just like that, she remembered exactly why she shouldn't be thinking about her partner. It distracted her, despite her greatest efforts to do her job, which is why she prized professionalism over thinking about love.

Love… There she went again. She had to stop kidding herself. Maybe she just didn't know what to call their odd exchange of feelings over the past few days. It wasn't like they had any chance of starting anything up with each other; with a strange, hollow feeling in her chest, she realized everything would probably go back to normal between them as soon as they returned home.

Suddenly, she wasn't so eager to leave.

"Gabriel, the pancakes are awesome. I was just thinking that the storm clouds are rolling in soon, so we'd better hurry and get the laundry." She covered up her distraught look quickly. He didn't need to know anything about her traitorous thoughts. He watched her face, almost like he knew she was keeping some big secret from him, but nodded anyway.

"I think I'll just grab your clothes for you. I checked the weather report already and the chip told me it's going to get cold again, so you should stay and collect some firewood before it starts raining. I don't think we're gonna be able to leave the cabin much today," he stated as he put their dishes in the sink and went to his room for a quick change of clothes.

_Just perfect_, Riley thought. More time for them to spend together in an enclosed space with nothing to do but enjoy each other's company.

She was already getting a migraine.

"Wait a minute, I should come with you, just like I should have last time. What if you get attacked and I'm here? I was hired to be your bodyguard, you know," she frowned and asked him when he came out.

"Is that concern I hear in your voice?" he chuckled. "It's fine. Lillian sent an email that said they had located the guardsman's car in the next state over. He apparently followed the decoy car that took off at the same time we left to come to the cabin, so he's fooled for now. They're waiting for him to try to make a move before they apprehend him, but I think I'll be safe enough." He brushed her off and exited the cabin.

Yup, she definitely had a migraine now.

* * *

As Riley was picking up some logs she heard the car pull up and the crunching of the leaves as Gabriel came over to her. She looked up and wordlessly handed him a pile of wood, almost smiling at his perturbed look. Wouldn't it be just like her to put him to work as soon as he got there?

"Firewood collecting going well?" He asked. He would've pulled his coat tighter around himself had his hands not been full.

"You can put those on the pile on the porch. And yes, it's going okay." He noticed her shoulder were set tensely. Something in her voice told him she was slightly on edge. He hoped it didn't have anything to do with his accident this morning.

And an accident was what he was going to call it. He was tired of her always besting him in their verbal sparring matches, and if he was forced to admit it, he loved unnerving her by getting close to her like he had this morning. Not to mention the affect it had on _him_. When he had closed his lips on her mouth, a wonderful warmth had spread quickly throughout his body. He had planned to move away right as soon as she had started to respond to his touch, but he didn't have the willpower to move away. Plus it just felt amazing getting that close to her. Her hair was as soft as silk, and every time they made skin-to-skin contact, it felt like a bolt of electricity had surged through him.

He hadn't regretted a minute of it before, but now that he had time to think on it, he was beginning to have second doubts. His heart was getting rather attached, and that was seriously bad, because he was sure that his desire for her was no longer due to his southern anatomy. And looking at his partner, it seemed like she was starting to regret their near-intimacy as well.

For a second, he began to seriously doubt whether Riley was actually enjoying their make-out sessions as much as he was. But then again, she kissed him back with just as much fervor and hadn't tried very hard to put a stop to him this morning. He couldn't help the wicked grin that suddenly spread across his face; he figured he was in the clear with her.

He looked thoughtfully over to her but blinked as a rain drop hit his nose. "Riley, it's starting to rain." She ignored him and kept picking up a few nearby branches for kindling. The rain started coming down in bigger drops and he knew they were going to get soaked if they didn't move inside soon. "Riley!"

She finally turned towards his pleading look and walked past him slowly with no mind to the rain. He heard her mumble an apology quietly.

They both scooped up the wood stacked on the porch, and Gabriel picked up the laundry bag nearby with one hand as they entered the cabin.

She still hadn't said anything at all even after they placed the wood in the fireplace and sat down to watch the flames. Before lighting the fire, she had approached the record player in the corner of the room and looked through the records resting against it. She picked up one that had music by Frank Sinatra, and _"I Get a Kick Out of You"_ started to play. It reminded Riley of the music that used to play in her grandparents' house and it helped to relax her somewhat.

Gabriel, on the other hand, grabbed a blanket from the big bedroom and frowned when he saw her sitting tiredly upon the couch cushions. He sighed and draped the blanket around her from behind and set his hands on her shoulders. "You seem a little tense, there, partner."

"Gee, I can't imagine why," she said tersely. Her muscles were tense, so he gently started massaging her. They only tightened up further.

"Just relax, I'm not gonna hurt you." She sighed and relented, closing her eyes when he kneaded a knot in her neck. "Was it something I said?" he joked as he worked his thumbs into the base of her neck and heard her sigh.

"We really should talk about this morning," she said quietly. Gabriel momentarily paused in his actions at her tone, but kept going as she talked. Riley wanted to avoid discussing it as much as he did, but they weren't going to get anywhere by being afraid to bring up the incident. "Things got a little…intense." She took a deep breath. "This is why I…why we can't deal with too much close proximity. You keep stepping in to my personal space, being nice like this –"

"What's wrong with being nice?" Gabriel interrupted. He didn't like where this was going. He was afraid she was going to try to put more distance between them when in reality neither of them wanted it. "It's probably just the proximity that's affecting us."

Probably.

"I'm sorry about this morning," he lied. "But it's not like anything bad happened. Besides, things will probably go back to normal when we go back to the city and get some space. We're both professionals, we can handle it," he declared, having finally worked a couple knots out of her shoulders and heard her sigh, either in relaxation or disbelief of what he was saying.

"Could we please at least try and pretend to be professional, then?" she fluttered her eyes open, unaware that they'd shut, and put her hands over his to stop him. "Like you said, space is what we need." She didn't catch his frown but heard him move around the couch and then sit on the opposite end. He was plastering a compliant smile on his face, which she was trying not to feel guilty about. Of course, she didn't want space between them; quite the opposite. However, if they were going to remain unattached at the hip, Riley needed to make an effort to obtain some breathing room.

"As you wish," he smirked. Did she really think this was going to help? The only reason he'd decided to sit on the other end of the couch was to make her more comfortable. He was positive it wasn't going to help. In fact, if that annoying hiker, Chris, hadn't shown up to take away poor Ivy, he was sure he would've succeeded in removing her shirt, and all her other clothing for that matter.

He knew he should focus on something else before his lower "brain" started taking over again. "I cannot believe that Ivy belongs to Chris," he chuckled lightly. Ivy was a safe topic.

Some of the worry lines on Riley's face relaxed a little. She was still frowning, though, when she answered him. "That's really just not right. Did you see how scared Ivy was when she saw him? Wanna bet this isn't the first time she's run away?"

"The poor thing probably didn't want to put up with all of his bragging," he remarked and got a smile out of his partner. He didn't like thinking about the poor treatment that Ivy received. "Did you notice the dog looked a bit thin, too? It's a wonder Chris is even allowed to own her."

Riley sat up straighter, worry lines back. "Do you think we should do something about it?" Her head was tilted and she looked over at him with big eyes. Gabriel was starting to feel even worse about letting the dog go, and squirmed where he sat.

"I'll email the lodge and at least tell them about Chris' illegal hiking plans. Maybe that'll get him in trouble or something and he'll hopefully have to give up Ivy." He stared out of focus for a few seconds. "Done. The lodge will have no choice but to send a team out to find him soon." He gave her a reassuring smile.

"Alright. At least we did something." It certainly didn't feel like enough. She thought about making Gabriel call animal control or something if Chris was let off the hook. No animal deserved to be treated cruelly. "I miss her already," Riley complained.

"You should really think about getting a dog," he suggested. He'd seen the way Riley's face lit up when she'd played with Ivy.

"I don't know, I've already got you," she snarked. "But seriously, I'd have no time to take care of a dog with our line of work being what it is. Plus, you're more than enough trouble," she said with a straight face, earning a sour eye-roll from him.

A wide, toothy-grin erupted on her face when he feigned offence. He was glad to finally have her laughing again. When she was sad, it usually turned out to be his fault. The least he could do was try his best to help her find her smile again. It always cheered him up, too.

They both jumped as the window suddenly flapped open and a cold gust burst through the room. Riley ran up to shut it and promptly sat back down to get warm by the fire again. Gabriel noticed that she'd inadvertently sat closer to him in the process. She was shivering hard, so he quickly rose from the couch and ducked into the kitchen.

Five minutes later, he came back out with two steaming mugs of hot cocoa. Since she'd moved slightly closer, he figured he was safe to inch slightly closer to her as well, and he did so while handing a mug to her eager and outstretched hands. "Oh my – you didn't have to do that." Her eyes were expressive and grateful as she mumbled her thanks.

"One condition, though," he started. "You have to at least let me share some of the blanket." He pointed to the large object that she was wrapped in. Instead of protesting, she moved it over and handed him a part of the blanket. "Oh, gee. I get a whole corner."

She rolled her eyes and scooted a few inches to her right so that he could reach the cloth better. "Do you really need two corners? I mean, that's a _lot_." She squinted her eyes at him in a teasing fashion.

"Yes, in fact. I'm sorry but I need at least a quarter of this thing, you blanket-hogger," he teased right back. They both chuckled. "It's freezing in here, and the fire isn't very big yet. I mean no funny business, I just want a little warmth." He took a big sip of the hot chocolate and shivered dramatically.

She relented and moved to the middle cushion so he could finally share half the blanket. "If this is some big ploy to completely ignore my wish for space-" she started with one perfectly arched eyebrow accompanying her glare.

"_Warmth_, Riley. Warmth. Honestly, I'm not trying to get a rise out of you, I'm a completely professional adult, you know," he grinned devilishly. He ran his tongue on his upper lip to try and contain the laughter that was threatening to bubble out of him.

"Which is why you've kissed me, like, ten times," she pointed out. Her glare held, but a lovely blush dappled her cheeks. She really was adorable when she was embarrassed. "Professional, my ass."

"Eight times," he caught her gaze and looked away.

"What?" she asked. She hated that her breath had caught in her chest.

"Eight times. Two times each on the mission, by the fireplace, at the party, and this morning – not including on the cheek." He swallowed and turned back to her. "For the record."

She lips formed a silent, "Oh," and she nodded, staring into the fireplace to watch the flames rise. _So…he'd kept track_, she thought. She took a moment to count them in her head, for she never realized just how many times they had touched lips. It was several moments before the sound of Gabriel talking brought her back out of it.

"Besides, _you_ kissed _me_ at the party. That wasn't my fault." He rubbed his jaw and set his empty mug on the end table near the side of the couch.

"But that was only because you said I wasn't a good kisser," she said defensively. The record player started the next song, "_I've got you under my skin."_

"Wrong again, you assumed I thought you were a bad kisser, then you went and tried to prove me wrong for no reason." He smiled, remembering. "I honestly don't know how you think you could possibly be a _bad_ kisser." Gabriel gave her a look of pride, to which she turned even redder at. She smacked his arm at the odd compliment.

"Well, I can never tell with you. And maybe I have a slight problem with being competitive and trying to prove you wrong," she sighed. At the time, she'd also been sort of scared that he was losing interest in her. Not that she wanted him to be interested in her. Darn it, was it the fact that they were sitting closer again? She tried to lean away from him slightly, even though they weren't touching.

"We both do," he replied. He shifted to put his blanket-covered feet up on the coffee table and the nice space between them that Riley had been enjoying was getting smaller and smaller by the moment. Riley followed his actions, though, because the blanket had fallen off her when he'd moved. Their arms, as well as their legs, were now grazing each other in order to stay under the warm cloth.

"Jeez this place needs more blankets," Riley grouched. Gabriel just laughed and leaned against her more. "So much for space," she muttered.

Gabriel ignored her fake protests this time. "Are you gonna finish that?" He reached for the cup and avoided her glare as he downed a few gulps.

Riley yanked the drink back and took a few sips. "Why do you always steal my drink, anyway? And why do you always feel the need to eat my food, too?" She could never just finish her own meals when he was around.

He shrugged. "We already swapped spit, so I wouldn't worry about sharing drinks, partner." He looked as though he was going to steal the cocoa out of her hands again.

Riley grimaced at the gross way he put it. She stared down at the drink, realizing she's put her mouth where he'd placed his, and a stupid, teenager-like giddiness struck her for a split second. What was she, in high school? It wasn't the same as a kiss, and wasn't nearly as good as the real thing. She hadn't realized she'd put her hands up to her lips while thinking about it.

Gabriel caught the action and glanced at her lips. He promised himself he wouldn't kiss her again, at least for the moment. He knew it just made Riley feel even guiltier that she was defying Lillian's orders, but boy could she tease him. And that was the thing that got to him – she wasn't even trying to make a conscious effort to tease him, but she still made him hotter than anything. He really was falling hard.

Wait, falling…falling in -?

No, of course he wasn't. He dismissed the idea and busied himself with grabbing her cocoa, completely emptying the mug. She opened her mouth wide in protest, but closed it just as quickly. She finally must have realized there was no hope in getting him to stop.

They were now both incredibly warm from the fire and from their body heat under the blanket. They simultaneously leaned back against the couch, Riley resting her head on Gabriel's arm that had somehow wrapped itself around her without her knowledge. She felt her lids getting heavy but fought to stay awake. Gabriel was listening to the music, and was so relaxed that he could barely tell what song was playing now. "I'll make you more cocoa later, or something," he told her. "I'm sorry I took your drink, but you were about to let it go cold."

She hummed in disagreement. "I was savoring it. Nothing wrong with making something good last while it can," she said softly. He held her meaningful gaze for a moment and allowed her to rest her head on his shoulder. While her words were saying one thing, her body certainly seemed to be saying another. It was confusing as hell for him, but he didn't protest when he heard her sigh quietly against his shoulders.

There went his heartstrings being pulled again. It was still mid-morning, but the heavy storm clouds were making it very dark outside. With the only light coming from the fireplace, it was even darker inside the cabin. Losing the battle to stay awake, his head drooped and came to rest atop her soft one. He could feel her breath tickling his neck and realized she was probably sound asleep.

Both agents fell asleep, succumbing to the naps they both needed. The crackling of the fire and the warm body heat that they shared lulled them off to sleep, giving way to pleasant dreams about each other.

* * *

Riley was smiling uncontrollably. The two agents were still on the couch, but Gabriel was hugging her close to his body again. She was resting on his chest, curled in an upright position against the side of his body. Gabriel had loosened his grip on her all of a sudden, so she popped her head up to stare directly into his face, questioning his movement.

Gabriel brought a hand up to graze the tip of his thumb over her bottom lip, and with a hand holding her jaw, brought her forehead down to rest against his. If she would've been able to breathe, they'd be sharing the same air.

He let go of her head and brought his arms around her. Gabriel positioned his hands on either side of her waist, holding onto Riley's hips and bringing her body around to sit on top of his lap. He hadn't moved his head to kiss her yet, and actually separated their foreheads to look at the skin that her low-cut shirt revealed. His fingers came up to skim her sensitive skin when he undid a few of the buttons near the top of the tee.

She shivered as he let go of the buttons and ran his hands up along both sides of her ribs. Riley saw that his pupils dilated quickly, probably matching hers. He placed an open kiss to the skin that he'd uncovered, and she felt her hands start to shake as his mouth got nearer to the thin fabric of her bra. His torturous trail stopped and veered towards her neck, coming up to a sensitive spot behind her ear. Riley had been gripping Gabriel's biceps tightly, but she released them to place her hands lightly on his chest.

She couldn't stand the wait any longer; Riley leaned her head back and tried to level his face with hers. The corners of Gabriel's mouth were upturned again, and she knew she'd finally be able to kiss the smirk off of him. She ran a tongue across her upper lip in anticipation, but he only leaned up to kiss her cheek, lingering as he brought his mouth to the corner of hers slowly, with a barely-there touch. It was only igniting the fuel inside her further, so she finally just moved her head to the right to meet him.

Her mouth found his in an urgent, deep kiss that had them both moaning; they'd deprived themselves of each other for too long. Gabriel brought her tongue into his mouth as soon as she'd opened hers and shoved both his hands into her hair. His thumb kept brushing her jaw lightly in contrast to the rough way he was taking her.

Riley's hands were caught between their bodies and they pushed against the warm fabric on his chest. She could feel his racing pulse like this, and reached down to the bottom of his shirt to start lifting it up. Gabriel let go of her head and placed both of his hands over hers to take over the action. Once his shirt was removed, he took hold of her hips again and pressed them onto his. She closed her eyes in pleasure at the movement and because his face was now leaning into her chest again.

She took a deep breath as he inched closer to her, but laughed because she was suddenly swung around and pressed against the lower couch cushions. He was hovering over her with a certain gleam in his eyes, and he quickly removed her shirt in one swift action. A startling heat erupted in her belly when he kissed her bare stomach and made his way leisurely up to the space between her breasts, making her arch when he reached the front clasp of her bra.

She couldn't believe this was happening. She smiled in totally ecstasy because for once, there would be no interruptions to keep him from getting as close as possible to her. Just as he was starting to remove her bra completely, a loud clap of thunder shook the cabin around them and viciously pulled her out of her sweet dream.

* * *

Riley had no idea what time it was when she actually woke up. Her whole body was buzzing from the dream and she was blinking at the ceiling, completely confused. The record player was still going, and the sky was still as dark as ever. And, her partner was still sleeping.

She was disoriented for an entirely different reason, though. Somehow, in the time span of their nap, the agents had moved from their position of leaning against the back of the couch and had slid down so that they were sleeping horizontally, side-by-side. Well, Gabriel was sleeping on his side. She was flat on her back.

She had only been dreaming, right? Her face flushed completely, and she hoped that they hadn't actually done anything in their sleep. One look at her unrumpled clothing had her taking a deep breath of relief.

Gabriel's arm was still wrapped around her, and he was hugging her body to his like she were his teddy bear. His nose was buried in her neck, and one of his legs was swung over hers. His warm breath washed over her cheek and she could hear him softly snoring. She found the situation a little funny, but knew it was bound to ignite the sexual tension they kept finding between themselves if he woke up soon.

Which, unfortunately, was why she jumped when he whispered, "What time is it?" She didn't even noticed he'd stopped snoring, and he'd snapped awake so quickly that she wondered if he'd really been snoring at all. His lips were still touching her neck and tickled her when he'd opened his mouth to talk.

"I can't tell," she spoke in a low voice. She tried to turn and look at him, but he hadn't moved from his position. He pressed his nose further into her neck and made like he was going back to sleep, resting his mouth on her shoulder.

She didn't know what to do. Should she let him fall back asleep? Push him off of her? His grip was strong; his right hand was wrapped across her stomach and clamped tightly onto her waist. She tried to move her other hand and found it firmly clasped in his left one. Her chest was doing that funny flutter again. She needed some space again, and_ soon_.

His light snoring had returned. Maybe he hadn't actually woken up at all. "Gabriel, are you awake?"

"No, it was purple on Wednesday," he muttered incoherently. Riley stifled a laugh that would really wake him up. So, apparently he was a sleep-talker. She could definitely have fun with this.

She wondered if he could understand her at all. "Gabriel." He moved his head slightly, which she took as a good sign. "Can you let go of me?" He frowned in his sleep and dropped his hold on her hip loosely, but hadn't lifted his leg off her. One of her arms was freed in the process though, and she put her hand over her eyes. She wasn't going to get off the couch like this.

Gabriel moved his head and his hair tickled her neck again. She tried to squirm away slightly and reached up to scratch her neck. His forehead was stuck in the dip of her shoulder again though, so her fingers just met his hair instead. She moved what she could away from her neck, but found herself touching his soft hair and running her fingers through it to smooth it out. She could have sworn she felt him smile against her skin and removed her hand immediately. "You've got me in quite the position," she said quietly.

"Yeah," he answered unexpectedly.

"I bet you're just having the time of your life right now." He was probably dreaming of something far different from the situation they were in. Boy, wouldn't he be shocked when he was brought back to the sad reality?

"Love it here with her," he mumbled.

Riley looked down at him again and her breath caught in her throat. "_Her_ who?"

"Riley." He smiled again. "Don't wanna ever leave here."

Her heart stopped beating altogether. She doubted he could answer her coherently, but she figured this was her chance to ask Gabriel how he really thought of her. It was now or never.

"Gabriel? Why do you keep invading my personal space? What's with the daily make-out sessions?" Her chest felt like it was drumming so loudly that just the sound of it was going to wake him. She held her breath as she waited a full minute for him to say something.

Finally, his head shifted so that it was resting more directly over her chest than her shoulder. Riley noted that his lids were still as heavy as before. "Love kissing Riley. Makes me feel warm," were the words she heard next. His head raised up again to give her a tired, sloppy kiss right on her cheek, and then he promptly went limp, snoring even louder.

She let out a whoosh of air and a quiet sort of giggle. He was adorable when he sleep-talked, and she couldn't help but feel the same warmth he had just described flooding all throughout her veins. He'd actually admitted to enjoying putting his lips on hers – he not only enjoyed it, but he actually seemed to love it. It wasn't any different for her, if she had to admit it. If his heavy, unconscious form hadn't been pinning her down, she might have actually jumped up and down.

What was it about him that made her want to scream embarrassingly like a pre-teen who'd just kissed their first crush? Sleep Gabriel was very different from Awake Gabriel. Sleep Gabriel actually let his guard down and told her how he felt, without teasing her mercilessly until she wanted to pull her hair out. Oh, she _so_ wanted to rub it in his face that he liked her. But that wouldn't last very long until he would turn the tables on her and ask her if she agreed with his thoughts about them kissing – which she would deny at all costs, obviously.

Her attention returned to the current situation when he grazed his stubble across the open skin of her chest and back down to where he'd woken up, lips pressed to her shoulder and nose in her neck. He inhaled sharply and blinked his eyes.

He was really awake this time.

"Quit talking, Riley. Go back to sleep." He apparently didn't care if they were wrapped up in each other when he was tired.

She looked down in shock at him, to which he raised his eyebrows in response. Not knowing how to react, she simply looked back at him as he stared into her darkened eyes. He suddenly grabbed her waist again and turned her so that her back came up against his chest, his strong arms holding her comfortably and his head resting behind hers. She choked on a surprised laugh. "Comfy, Gabriel?"

"Mhm, very. Are you gonna keep chatting though? 'Cause I'd like to finish my nap now, if you don't mind." The only reason she was sure he wasn't sleep talking was because of his grouchy sarcasm. That was the Gabriel she knew and lo…liked_. Liked_.

"Sorry," she answered sarcastically. His hold was keeping her extremely warm, even without the blanket that they were still sharing. Spooning him like this turned out to be more comfortable than she'd thought possible, so she relaxed completely against him.

Since she couldn't see a way of getting out of his embrace anytime soon, she supposed there was only one thing to do.

She closed her eyes and drifted off to the sound of Sinatra and the rain beating lightly against the roof, happy that for once, she wasn't worrying about what might happen when she woke up.

A/N: How was it? It took a lot of time to write this particular chapter, so I hope it turned out well…but you guys should tell me what you thought! I tried to jam-pack it with fluff. Aren't I a tease?


	8. Chapter 8 - Poison

**Disclaimer: I own Ivy and Chris… that's about it. **

**A/N: SO SORRY. I know I said I might be able to get the next chapter done earlier, but life happened. I'm back to college now, so I'm not gonna have as much time to write, so I'm super sorry. I keep trying to get these chapters out as fast as I can, but you'll have to be patient with me. Without further ado…**

**Rated: T **

**CHAPTER EIGHT – Poison**

The record had stopped playing by the time Gabriel opened his eyes and broke himself out of his own dream. He wasn't sure if he was completely awake yet, though, because of the close vicinity of a certain someone with long brown curls that he was sharing a blanket with.

He cursed silently when he was ripped out of the heavenly dream, as it had been just as intense as his partner's. He would have stayed asleep longer, but the chip was trying to waken him in order to check an important email that Officer Bates had sent him.

He read the message in an instant. Apparently, the park rangers had went in search of Chris at eleven o'clock. It went on to thank Gabriel, telling him that they would alert him when the camper was found. He frowned at the clock, which now read 2:30 in the afternoon, seeing that it had been quite a while after the message was sent. What was taking them so long?

Ultimately, he decided he really didn't care all that much, and turned to look at Riley. He vaguely remembered moving her more comfortably against him, which explained why they were spooning. Gabriel moved his arm to shake her very slightly to tell if she was asleep, to which she did not respond.

It was no wonder he dreamt of her during their nap; the scent of her shampoo was filling the air around him. It smelled wonderfully like _her_, he realized. He laid back down and buried his nose in her hair, inhaling deeply. He was unprepared for when she flipped in his arms and faced him, eyes still shut.

Her pink mouth was slightly open, and she was breathing out little puffs of air against his cheek. Her hands fisted into his shirt and she pulled herself further into his warm embrace, huddling against him in a way that sent a shock throughout his body. He felt his hands involuntarily tighten at her waist, prompting the still-asleep Riley to erase the distance between their hips. His eyes dilated as another, _entirely different_ shock coursed through his veins at the contact.

To his annoyance, another email distracted him and he grudgingly opened it to read another message from Officer Bates. She indicated that she needed to talk to Gabriel urgently. He grunted loudly in displeasure. If she was going to ask him for help in apprehending that obnoxious camper, he was going to flat-out refuse. There was no way was he gonna move from his spot given that Riley, his tough-as-nails, assigned-to-protect-him adorable bodyguard was snuggling into his chest at the moment.

Not to mention, her head was resting against his arm, less than a hand's distance away from his own face. From here, he could watch her sleeping peacefully and just gaze at her unabashedly.

_That sounded a lot creepier than I thought it would_, Gabriel concluded as he replayed that last thought in his mind.

He grumbled again as the chip announced yet another email from Sally. Gabriel instantly regretted the sound, though, because Riley started blinking up at him all of a sudden. All negative thoughts were eradicated from his mind as he watched her struggle to reach consciousness. A dreamy smile was plastered on her face, and he wondered what she was so happy about. "Pleasant dreams?"

He watched as she nodded with rosy cheeks, but then Riley furrowed her brow as she quickly glanced about the room. She faced him again and glanced at his nearby mouth before looking him in the eye. "How…how long have we been sleeping?" she stuttered.

"Well, it's way past lunch," he replied. In the time that it had taken Riley to wake up, he'd made up a great plan in his mind.

Earlier, Riley had said that what she wanted was space. In reality, Gabriel could tell that she secretly was just trying to distance herself for the sake of her job. He was sure she would come around eventually, but because it wasn't happening as quickly as he liked, he thought that he would speed things up a little. He saw the way that Riley leaned into his touches and threw herself passionately into their kisses – it was only a tiny thing holding her back, really.

He would sort out that later, though. If he wanted to be able to kiss and touch her as much as he liked, he had to get her to consent to it. But, the only way to get her to do that would be to make it seem like it was her idea. For that to happen, he would just have to convince her by teasing her mercilessly until she gave into his charm.

Teasing each other was what got them into this mess in the first place, so he could surely use it to amp up the sexual tension between them. No more kissing her because he felt like it; it would take a lot of resolve on his part, but he decided he was going to taunt her without ever satisfying their unspoken needs. Since they were only a small space apart, now seemed like a perfect time to put his plan into effect.

"Speaking of lunch, we should make some. You're going to wither away to nothing, agent, if you skip a meal," he said matter-of-factly.

His hand at her lower back came up to softly squeeze her thin waist when he emphasized the word "nothing." He felt her muscles tense and her eyes widen when his thumb brushed her. He could tell his plan was working already, so he dropped his hand and internally counted it as a victory when she frowned.

"I eat just fine. I like my body the way it is," she retorted. "But, I would love to eat whatever you want to make." Ah, she was trying to get back at him by making him cook. He could make that work to his advantage. "You can also make me more hot chocolate, while you're at it," she added.

"Oh, I'd be delighted." Gabriel grinned widely and raised up on his elbow. His eyes never left Riley's as he reached his arm slowly across her. Both their mouths were open slightly and Gabriel felt her heart rate pick up, as his chest was now over hers. His arm was still extending though, and Riley looked confusedly between his lips, now inches from hers, and the empty hot cocoa mug he was reaching for. Much to her disappointment, he sat up once he grabbed a hold of the mug and lifted off of her.

Before he entered the kitchen, he caught the huge eye roll that accompanied her full facial flush. Gabriel never remembered seeing Riley blush so much in their entire time of working together. He loved that he had that effect on her.

He started running warm water and put soap in the mugs to wash them. The padding of tired footsteps ten minutes later told him that she had decided to follow him into the kitchen. "I'm thinking of making some grilled peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches. Sound good to you?"

"Strangely yes. I can't believe you actually know of a meal I haven't heard of before." She had been leaning against the frame of the doorway to the kitchen, but moved slowly into the kitchen to help him put the dishes away. "Are you sure it's a real dish and not some made-up dream sandwich?"

He scoffed. "Of course it is. I practically grew up with these – don't you trust me?" He put a hand over his heart and feigned hurt.

"I guess I'm willing to risk eating it. It doesn't sound half bad, anyway." After they were done with the dishes, Riley sat up on the counter nearest to Gabriel, watching him make the sandwiches. Her feet swung back and forth and she reached out to nudge the side of his leg briefly. "Hey, thanks for taking the time to make me such good food, by the way."

He smiled up at her and put the sandwiches on the stove. It was time for another installment of his plan.

"I see you changed into shorts," he started, turning his attention fully to her. She nodded in reply and looked down at her clothing as he continued. "Much better than those long pants from before. It's going to be slightly warmer this afternoon, right?"

Riley kept her head down, picking at the edges of her shorts. She hadn't thought about it when she put them on, she just knew that her own temperature had risen substantially from their cuddle session on the couch. She jumped when she realized he was now standing right in front of her, and swallowed as his hands rested beside either side of where she was sitting on the counter.

He wasn't exactly in her personal space; he was leaning slightly away from her body with his weight on his hands, just barely able to be considered a reasonable distance away. She felt an unexpected thrill from being essentially cornered where she sat on the countertop. She cleared her throat when she realized she was asked a question. "Um, well…I'm hoping the weather will look up. It was only supposed to get cold last night, right? From the looks of the outdoors," she pointed towards the kitchen window, "it already looks like the rain just stopped. I don't see any harm in wearing the shorts."

When Gabriel followed her gaze to the window, he intentionally moved his arm in such a way that his wrist lightly grazed the skin of her thigh when he turned. He moved his feet a step towards her when he looked back, watching her face closely as she looked anywhere but at him. He allowed himself a smirk. _It was working._

"They're completely fine by me," he said with a deliberately smoldering look at her long legs that were revealed by the shorts. He lightly placed his hands on the skin above her knees, leaning in by just an inch and whispered to her. "Those shorts are a personal favorite of mine, actually."

He saw her unintentionally lean her body closer to him, and that's when he knew he'd really got her good. Pretending not to notice the lessened distance, he glanced at the stove. His hands skimmed the rest of the way down to her knees when he left her to flip the sandwiches by the stove.

Gabriel could've sworn he heard a quiet grunt behind him and grinned to himself. _Gabriel – 1, Riley – 0._

"Do you like your sandwiches lightly browned or black and burnt?" he questioned. He kept a straight face and acted like nothing happened, and was pleased to note the unhappiness in her returning scowl. Well, he didn't like that she was unhappy, but he loved the reason behind it.

She grouchily answered his question and he made sure to turn the heat down on the stove to grill the sandwich to her liking. Once the sandwiches were flipped, he walked over to her again and ignored the suspicious look he was receiving. "The food will be ready soon, partner. May I help you down?"

Riley's glare softened, if only a little, and she rested her hands on his shoulders while he placed his hands on her hips. He caught her quick, mischievous grin as he gently lifted her off the counter. Riley probably thought he was going to try and pull her into his arms again and she looked…happy about it?

This realization sent a warm current flowing through his chest because it only confirmed his suspicions about her liking their nearness.

Maybe she had decided, in the few hours that they had spent pressed up against each other, that she was going to damn her boss's orders and do as she pleased. If that was the case it was all the better for him, but because he was stubborn, he knew he couldn't just drop the teasing act. It was already turning out to be fun.

Since Gabriel had walked right up to the countertop and stopped directly in front of her, there was little space for her to hop down when she was helped off. When Riley was set down, still incredibly close to him, his body had ended up accidently pinning hers against the counter. He let his tortuous fingers slide down and smooth out her shirt, which had ridden up slightly because of their close contact.

Riley's mouth was hanging slightly open again. _She really was still expecting to get kissed? _

He wasn't about to satisfy her, though. He had to make her wait just a bit longer, because this was the best kind of torture. Gabriel also silently agreed that he wouldn't make his plan last for too long, as it was sort of backfiring on him. As much as Riley appeared to miss him "taking charge" with her, he knew he missed it ten times more.

"Sandwiches are done," he spoke in an unexpected gravelly voice. Gabriel forced himself to release her and got the sandwiches off the heat. _That was definitely enough of that._

He handed Riley her plate and guided her to the dining room table with a hand at her back. They ate in tense silence, Gabriel aware of Riley's eyes on him the whole time. He refused to meet her glare and smiled to himself all the while. He was winning this round.

Internally, Riley was seething. Her partner was being completely cruel. Since when did he not take every opportunity to kiss her senseless? It was that question that ran through her mind for the whole of lunch.

They were finishing their last few bites when Gabriel got up to answer the phone. Riley watched his face darken slightly at the voice on the other end. She chided herself for being uncharacteristically happy that something finally put a damper on his unusual good mood – something really could've been wrong.

"What's up?" she asked. He looked more annoyed than upset now.

"Looks like we're not going to stay trapped in the cabin all day after all," he grouched. He made fists with his hands and took their empty plates into the kitchen. He really didn't need this to happen and ruin his day.

_His day with Riley. Just the two of them._

What a nice day it might have been had they actually gotten to spend it alone with each other.

"Seriously, Gabriel, what's wrong?" Riley was really starting to worry now. The tense set of his shoulders transitioned into a sort of defeated stance.

"Remember the email we sent to the lodge about Chris? They emailed me back a couple of hours ago, saying that they'd sent out a search team for him," he turned around and met her eyes with a frown. "Bates just called to ask for our help. Chris has officially gone missing."

* * *

"Remind me why we have to do this again?" Riley sighed.

Gabriel filled her in during the car ride over about how he'd received several emails while they were on the couch. Officer Bates had wanted to ask them if they'd be a part of the search party for Chris. The mountainside was wet and the park officials had guessed that Chris might've gotten into trouble when he tried to hike the old, overgrown trail. It hadn't been maintained lately, and Bates told them it was easy to get lost in these muddy, springtime woods. Much to their dismay, Officer Bates already knew they were in some department of law enforcement, so she knew they wouldn't refuse to help.

"Seriously, must we do this?" Riley repeated.

"Yes. We have to keep up appearances," Gabriel insisted. He held out his hand, waiting.

She rolled her eyes and took the hand, giving Gabriel a sour look when he intertwined their fingers. He had insisted upon still acting like a married couple and told Riley to hold his hand. Little did she know that it was yet another installment of his plan.

"Don't frown. Look like you're happily married to me," he smirked. He brushed his thumb against the back of her hand absentmindedly.

"Married couples fight all the time. I'm sure this looks perfectly convincing." She tried to look a little less angry, though. She was already distracted by the warm hand that held hers, and it would be hard enough acting like everything was normal.

"Yeah, only if we were actually married. This is a_ fake_ marriage, so you need to be _fake_ happy. You can be _real_ angry with me when we're _real_ married," he replied.

Riley stopped dead in her tracks and almost dropped his hand. "What?"

"What?" He furrowed his brow. Gabriel felt heat arise on his cheeks when he suddenly realized his slip-up. "That's not what I- I didn't mean…" he stuttered. "Not that you want to get real married, I mean, not that I…neither of us want to get married, right?" _One point to Riley for that one._

Dammit, it was really emasculating to be blushing this hard. Riley just laughed nervously at his reaction.

They stood there, frozen where they stood, looking rather intensely at one another. They were still holding hands, and Gabriel was still brushing his thumb against her hand. Gabriel almost took a step forward.

As their famous luck of bad-timing would have it, they were interrupted when Sally walked over to greet them at the base of the mountain's trail. She saw the two supposed lovers and gave them a little wave. "How are you guys doing this afternoon? I'm so glad you could come. We really appreciate your help."

Gabriel painstakingly tore his gaze away from his stunning partner and towards the bumbling officer. "It's no problem, we weren't doing anything important anyway," he replied with ill-concealed sarcasm.

Riley nudged him, but he just smiled at his "wife" lovingly. Trying to return the smile, Riley asked, "Have you seen any dog tracks alongside Chris's footprints?" She wanted to bring Gabriel's attention back to the real reason they were joining the search party, and she squeezed his hand extra hard in emphasis.

If he was affected by her grip, Gabriel didn't show it. He kissed the top of her head just to get under her skin.

"As a matter of fact, we did find prints. I'll tell the search party we're looking for the dog too," Sally beamed. She handed them a map and directed them to the search party before hiking back to where she came from.

Once she was out of earshot, Riley gave him a harder, more painful nudge. "What the hell Gabriel? Was all that really necessary?" She glared at him as he gave her a trademark smirk. "You're just enjoying how uncomfortable I am."

"Says the woman still holding my hand," he pointed out. She groaned aloud, ripping her hand free and heading off in the direction circled on their map. _Gabriel -2, Riley – 1. He was still winning._

She really was beautiful when she was angry with him. He watched her retreat, hips bound in the same shorts from this morning and a short-sleeved tee. They had left in a hurry, and Gabriel guessed she hadn't had time to bring a jacket.

She was going to be cold later… He made a mental note to offer his sweatshirt to her if they were still in the woods by the time the sun set.

* * *

An hour later, Riley and Gabriel still hadn't found Chris. However, they found Ivy tied to a tree near the trail by a leash. It was Riley who had seen Ivy first, and she ran up to her, sadly noting how Ivy's tail was between her legs. Riley hated that Ivy thought she was going to be punished, and scratched the dog's ears until she was drooling happily. Gabriel took the dog and reluctantly handed her over to the awaiting medical team at the bottom of the mountain.

"There may be hope yet!" Bates exclaimed when they found the dog. She had just circled a new place of interest and handed Riley and Gabriel their map back. "Chris can't be too far from his pet – no respectable dog owner would leave their pet alone like that," she added, walking away.

The agents shared a knowing look and both decided to search an area outside of the marked one. The local law enforcement was getting nowhere with their poor methods, and the agents needed to take initiative if they were going to actually make progress in the search. Sure enough, another hour later, they found a withering Chris, soaking wet and huddling against the base of a tree. Gabriel did his best not to laugh when Riley reminded her partner that Chris was probably upset and traumatized. In reply, Gabriel told her, "Well, he certainly deserves it."

It took a while, but the agents finally convinced Chris to get up and move with them down the mountain. He was silent, fortunately, and only thanked them when he was offered water. He walked behind them, trudging slowly and solemnly. Walking side by side, Gabriel reached for his partner's hand again once they reached the clearing, ever eager to keep up the act.

The crowd that had gathered cheered loudly for the noble agents. They were none too keen about the missing hiker, who was handcuffed after he checked in with the medical team. He escaped with a few bruises and a broken wrist, and told the police that he'd lost the trail once it started raining. Ivy had been chained to a tree because she kept tugging him along in a direction that Chris didn't want to go. Gabriel assumed that the poor dog was just trying to run away from her cruel master again.

"I guess we're something akin to heroes on this campsite, now," Gabriel whispered to Riley. She shared a smile with him.

"Yeah. The only deed I'm proud of is that we brought Ivy back. Oh, and getting that asshole arrested," Riley added. Then, she glanced behind Gabriel. "Don't look now, but I think we're about to be interviewed."

Gabriel glanced in the direction Riley was looking in to see a woman holding a microphone with a cameraman on her heels. A third man with a pad and pencil was coming along as well to catch their words by hand. "Oh great. We have to make sure they don't broadcast our faces - the guardsman could see it and he'd track us instantly."

"How? You can't just ask them to turn their camera off!" she whispered hurriedly. They were getting nearer by the second. Riley looked up at him with wide eyes. "What do we do?"

"I think I have a plan," Gabriel told her, just in time for the reporter to tap him on the shoulder. He made sure their fingers were locked and turned to show his dimples off to the blonde woman holding the microphone. She beamed back at him and shook his empty hand.

"Hi. Can I talk to you two about your heroic efforts to find the missing hiker? How long did you search for the poor guy?" She asked. Her face contorted into what she deemed a serious look, acting like she was a hard-hitting reporter and puffing her chest out to try and make her posture more noticeable by Gabriel.

Riley clenched her hands. The reporter wasn't giving her the time of day. She was directing her questions purely at Gabriel, leaning towards him enough so that he could have a perfect view down the reporter's shirt. Riley forgot that he was holding her hand at the same time, though, and frowned when he looked over at her clenched hand as he answered the reporter's questions.

Why couldn't she just keep it together? She thought the reporter was beneath her, so she couldn't possibly be jealous. Could she? No… Riley just didn't like how loose she was being with her partner. For goodness sake, they were supposed to be married, so how dare that woman try and flirt with _her_ man?

Not _her_ man…. Her _fake_ man. Yeah.

If she was going to keep her _fake_ marriage intact, she'd have to play it up a little bit more. Her other hand came to rub Gabriel's forearm that was already in her grasp. She leaned onto his shoulder and sighed heavily. Interrupting whatever question the woman was going to ask next, she said, "Oh honey – you forgot to mention how Chris abandoned his dog all alone on the mountain."

"That's right," Gabriel said, picking up on what she was doing and playing along. "Not to mention that his whole plan to hike was illegal. He caused a lot of people to worry and his dog could've been killed. We're happy we found them both alive, but it would've paid to hike more safely," he said with fake worry in his eyes.

The reporter pouted with her own bout of fake concern. "Well, on behalf of this town, we thank you for your great service today," she said. Turning back to the camera, she signed off for her local news channel. When the cameraman gave her the signal, she turned back to Gabriel, eyes gleaming.

"You know, if you ever wanna discuss how the search went down further, you can always call me." The reporter handed him a slip of paper with her number on it, which Gabriel did not accept. Riley grinned victoriously.

"Thanks, but I'm married. Riley, here, is my beautiful and loving wife. She did most of the work and saw Chris sitting against a tree well before I did," he told the blonde, putting his arms around Riley's shoulders and giving her a smack of a kiss on the lips.

Riley's smile almost disappeared at the shock of electricity that erupted from his short kiss, but she recovered quick enough to shoot the annoying woman a smug grin. Boy, she loved this side of Gabriel. His defensiveness made her feel overwhelmingly proud to be his partner.

Partner? Friend? She didn't even know what they were anymore.

Regardless, the reporter turned away in disappointment at the couple. She may have been a little too forward, but she certainly wasn't as rude as Chris had been to them. That had to count for something, but Riley was still happy to see her go.

Riley turned on Gabriel once the woman left, and said charmingly, "Wow. I've never met _Possessive Gabriel_ before."

"And I've never met _Jealous Riley_," he shot back. He was still very close to her, and he thankfully hadn't moved away yet. He could see a trace of something in her eyes when she gazed at his nearness. It may have been doubt, but he thought it was justifiable given the way he'd kept teasing her this morning. He promised himself he would relent just this one time.

He had decided to downplay his evil plans for the moment, and Gabriel leaned down a bit further until he could feel her warm breath against his lips. He gently moved the extra inch to meet Riley. Gabriel closed his eyes when he felt her sigh against his mouth. She barely registered the click of a camera in the background, as he was tugging her waist closer to his. He softly sucked her bottom lip into his mouth briefly and slipped a hand into her hair. The short kiss ended when they heard someone whistling at them.

Riley stepped back, embarrassed by the sudden audience they'd attracted. Camera phones were being held up by what was left of the crowd, no doubt so they could post something on their favorite social media sites about how they'd seen the couple, described as both heroic and romantic, lead the missing hiker out first hand.

"Had to keep the crowd entertained," Gabriel said a little too quickly, trying to make up an excuse offhand. He leaned down to her ear and whispered, "Don't worry. I hacked their phones. Those photos will be gone instantly." He smiled into her hair, leaned back, and waved to the crowd. The agents nonchalantly backed up towards the edge of the clearing, discouraging the amateur photographers and isolating themselves from more interviewers.

Riley's eyes lit up once they'd reached the tree line. "Wait – what about the reporter's camera? I thought you said you had a plan to make sure we weren't caught on film?"

He smiled calmly and gazed at her still-swollen lips. "I did. The camera was hooked up to a wire that ran into the news van over there," he pointed towards the vehicle. "That footage automatically uploaded to a storage hold on one of the computers inside the van, which was accessible by internet." Gabriel tapped his head and added, "I erased the video from all existence."

Riley smiled and let out a relieved laugh. "And they still have the written interview on hand, so they won't come back and ask for another interview. That's genius, Gabriel." She beamed proudly at him.

"Thank you, I thought so too," he grinned. He was glad he thought to do so – there was no way he was going to let their cabin excursion end anytime earlier than it needed to. The guardsman finding them was not something he wanted to happen.

What he _did_ want to happen was for them to forget their responsibilities and live in the cabin forever, but he doubted that would ever happen. Besides, he was sure Riley would never agree to that, much less agree to be alone with him for that long.

She was pacing around currently, watching the crowd near the road disperse and disappear. The sun was about to set, and a chill had finally settled in the air again.

_How was she not cold yet?_ Gabriel looked more closely at the way her arms were crossed over her chest and saw she was shivering very slightly.

Dutifully, he shed his sweatshirt and held it out to her. Riley's eyebrows were raised suspiciously, but she took the proffered article of clothing when the wind blew a cold burst of air towards them. He noticed a teasing gaze settle on her perfect features after she put it on, though, and she asked him, "Are you sure you can handle this Gabriel? Remember the last time I borrowed your clothes?"

He noticed the way her pupils had suddenly dilated and chuckled. "Oh don't act like you didn't love it," he said, knowing exactly what she was referring to. His tongue involuntarily flicked out and he tried hard to remind himself not to reach for her for the second time in the span of ten minutes when she blushed furiously.

She didn't get a chance to voice her retort, though, because Gabriel suddenly frowned and wore on a worried expression. "Ivy!"

"The dog? I handed her back to the ambulance over an hour ago. She's fine," Riley said, furrowing her brow. Gabriel looked deadly serious that something bad had happened, and it almost scared her when he grabbed her hand and dragged her over to wear he stood.

"No." He pointed down to the ground she had been standing on and looked at her.

Riley looked back at the pile of weeds she'd been pacing through and swore. She put her head in her hands and groaned.

"Poison ivy."

**A/N: Special thanks to diana_of_wales for beta-ing my chapters for me. My work wouldn't be possible without you.**

**Also – special shout-out to a guest reviewer named "Cassie" who keeps giving me incredibly lovely reviews, and who also told me that she (**_**or he, one can never know**_**) liked my story better than any other fanfiction she (**_**or he ;D**_**) had ever read. It brought tears to my eyes, and I think I love this guest reviewer very much.**

**However, I cherish every review I get, so here's a big thank you to all of you who have given me a review – I appreciate it more than you know, even if I don't have time to mention everyone. **


	9. Chapter 9 - Kissing

**A/N: I got such a nice response from the last chapter! Gosh you guys are sweet. I even saw that somebody shared the link to chapter one on Tumblr, and I wanted to jump up and down 'cause I was so excited! So, I just had to write this fluffy chapter real quick. I don't think I've ever updated this quickly!**

**Disclaimer: Really? You think CBS would be this fluffy? I'll own this the day they pay me.**

**Rated – T**

**Chapter Nine - Kissing**

Riley's head was still in her hands when Gabriel pulled her quickly but gently towards Officer Bates' squad car.

_How could she be so thick as to trudge right through poison ivy?_ Riley thought to , she was an avid outdoorswoman, she should know better. For all the years she'd been camping, she never once made a mistake as stupid as this.

She must have been just completely distracted by something. Riley thought back on the conversation she was having with her partner… What had they been talking about?

Her eyes widened and she realized what it was. She almost stopped where she stood, but Gabriel was moving her at such a pace that she knew she would fall if she did. Riley did clench her fingers into a fist, though. _Boy was he going to be in trouble_, she thought, seething internally.

The partners were in a half-jog to catch up with Sally before she pulled out. When she saw them, she frowned in concern. "Is something wrong?" she called after rolling her window down.

"Can you call back one of the medics and send them to our Cabin, please?" Gabriel almost looked livid, but Riley could see that the anger was actually fright. But why was _he_ scared? Continuing, he explained, "Riley accidently walked through some poison ivy, so I'd like to have her checked out, please."

He left Officer Bates with her mouth hanging open, not waiting for an answer. He hurried with Riley over to their car, expression hardening. Something else must be bothering him. She was determined to ask him once they started down the road.

"What's wrong with you?" Riley asked as they pulled out. She was supposed to be the annoyed one here. Her legs didn't really feel any different, but she knew the oils from the plant were probably all over them by now. She hoped the medic had lots of experience treating this sort of thing.

He scoffed. "Me? What about you? I thought you knew all about the outdoors, yet _I'm_ the one who noticed you stepping in a poisonous plant before you did," he grouched. He knew it wasn't her fault, but he couldn't help but be frustrated.

"Excuse me?" Riley seethed. "You're acting like this is my fault? This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't tried kissing me again!"

"So it's _my_ fault now?"

"Well, I'm not saying it isn't. You've been trying to get a rise out of me all day! Don't even try denying it," she said when it looked like he was going to.

"Oh, come on. You kissed me back, and besides, I was doing that to keep up with our cover," he said, ignoring her accusation. "I don't see what that has to do with you stepping through –"

"You distracted me!" Riley nearly shouted, cutting him off. "How do you expect me to focus when you completely distract me by kissing me senseless and holding hands all day and-"

She broke off suddenly, aware that she'd said too much. Taking a deep breath, she added, "Oh, you know what I mean." Stealing a quick glance at him, she furrowed her brow because Gabriel was hiding a smile.

"Didn't know I was that great of a kisser," he chuckled quietly. He noted a faint blush on her cheeks and stopped smiling, though. "I'm sorry. You're completely right."

"About what?" Riley waited.

"I haven't been terribly professional at all." Gabriel gave her a small smile that stirred something inside her.

"Darn right." Riley nodded, relieved that he'd agreed with her on one thing. "But I haven't tried my best to ignore you, either."

Gabriel just let out a quick laugh. The conversation might have been slightly awkward, but it was revealing. At least they'd stopped fighting somewhat. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. It's just that, well I'm worried, that, you know…"

"Yeah?"

"If you get too sick, we might have to leave the cabin earlier than expected," he said somewhat solemnly. She was surprised and looked over at his forlorn expression. His eyes were determinedly looking ahead at the road. Maybe he was just as eager to prolong their stay as she was.

Why did it suddenly feel like butterflies were invading her stomach? She took a deep breath, but all she could reply with was, "Oh."

It seemed to greatly contrast with the thoughts swirling wildly in her mind, threatening to spill out in protest at them leaving. Dammit, she wasn't going to let one stupid mistake ruin their vacation. She would pull through, somehow. She put a hand over his quickly and poured sincerity into her voice when she told him, "I'm really sorry Gabriel."

He shook his head and entwined her hand with his, holding it there for a moment longer. "Don't apologize. I wish you weren't hurt."

He lifted his hand off hers, trying to respect her wished for once. It had been his fault for distracting her, and he knew it. And, it ate at him that it had actually caused her harm", and he wasn't the least bit proud of himself. He glanced over at her to find Riley watching him with worried eyes. He felt a pang in his chest when he realized she was probably trying to hide the fact that she was a bit scared about her own condition.

They soon pulled up to the cabin and Gabriel guided Riley inside, going straight to the bathroom. "Sit here," he'd instructed, pointing to the tub edge as he left to go to the kitchen. Gabriel returned with rubbing alcohol and a washcloth that he'd gotten from the linen closet. "If it makes you feel better, I've just become an expert in treating poison ivy, thanks to the chip," he said, smiling at her.

"That's very reassuring," Riley said with a breath of relief, not a hint of sarcasm in her voice. It was touching to see he was going so far to help her. "You really do care about me a little bit," she absentmindedly remarked.

Gabriel held her gaze for a moment before replying. "Of course." He started opening the alcohol and soaking the washcloth with it. "Can you take off your shoes and socks?"

She did as she was asked and hung her legs over the side of the tub as he turned towards her. His eyes widened suddenly as he realized something. "Wait! Did you touch the affected area?"

Riley swallowed. "I might have. I don't know exactly where the ivy got me, but my hands did graze my legs when I removed my shoes," she said worriedly.

Gabriel swore and briefly closed his eyes. "I'm sorry. The oil from the plant spreads easily, so you probably have it on your hands, now." He bent down with the washcloth in hand. "I'm going to have to wash your legs with this, now. Try not to touch anything else, okay?"

Riley swore under her breath, too. "As if I didn't think I could make the situation worse," she sighed. She really wanted to cross her arms, but her hands hung awkwardly away from any exposed skin she might accidentally touch. "How come you're washing my legs with rubbing alcohol?"

He'd started gently washing her ankles off with the stuff, using the cloth as a barrier between his skin and hers. "This stops the spread of what you got on your legs. Is it itching yet?" Gabriel looked up at her.

"Nope," was all she could get out. The gentle way he was treating her gave her a funny feeling in her chest again. He was medically helping her out though, so she shouldn't have found his gesture the least bit intimate.

This day had been wild for both of them. First they woke up together, tangled up under the sheets, and had kissed each other so thoroughly that Riley had almost thought that they would be staying in bed all day. She blushed at the thought. After extracting themselves from one another, they had come together yet again and cuddled on the couch for half the day. They'd shared another kiss under the guise of being a married couple to spectators watching the search party commence, and now Gabriel was taking care of Riley with a tender touch.

How Riley had survived the day, she didn't know. The problem was, she hadn't really been annoyed with anything Gabriel had done to her. In fact, Riley was having trouble admitting to herself that the day had been, dare she say, one of the best in respect to spending time with him. She frowned for a moment at her traitorous thoughts.

Riley hadn't realized that Gabriel had finished washing her ankles and was now reaching for her hands. She held them out to his awaiting, cloth-covered hands, and he gently took them, massaging them to rid her skin of any of the poisonous oils it might contain. She was enjoying the feeling immensely, and her earlier frown was quickly replaced when she thought of them on the couch again. She laughed quietly to herself.

"What is it?" he asked, pausing to hold her hands steady in his. His eyes met her mirth-filled ones.

"Did you know you sleep talk?" she chuckled, raising her eyebrows in question. She knew she shouldn't tease him, but his funny habit was, for some reason, extremely entertaining to her at the moment.

Gabriel immediately frowned and squinted at her. "No way. You're making that up,"

"I'm not."

"That's ridiculous. If I did sleep talk, then what… What did I say?" He seemed almost fearful.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Yes, actually, I would."

Riley giggled. "Nah, it's a secret between me and _Sleep Gabriel_."

"Oh come on, stop trying to be cute," Gabriel glowered at her.

"You think I'm cute?" Riley asked with a mock tilt of her head. "Aw, that's sweet, Gabriel."

"It doesn't matter how cute you are. Just tell me what I said!" he pleaded.

But Riley was in full teasing mode. "Well, I'm pretty sure you just confirmed that you find me cute," she pointed out.

Gabriel moved closer to her in warning. "Alright, let's just get it out of the way then. Yes, you're adorable." His eyes roamed her face thoughtfully. "But unless I told you that when I was sleeping, I don't see how that's relevant."

She was smiling shyly, if not a little victoriously. Her stomach had butterflies in them again. Gabriel was making her feel giddy again, and she laughed as he rolled his eyes, embarrassed at his own admission. "Well, that's not quite what you said."

"You're never going to tell me, are you?" He sighed in defeat and dropped her hands, now clean. It was bothering him because he wasn't sure he wanted her to know what he'd been dreaming about. While he'd been sleeping, Gabriel had been graphically envisioning the partners picking up where they'd left off in bed that morning. He'd removed her shirt and ignored the knocking at the door in his dream, taking Riley further than they'd ever gone before. Her kisses had been drugging and Gabriel was completely absorbed in her, shocked and sad to realize that it'd only been a dream. The only thing that made waking up okay was that she was still on the couch with him, pressed up tightly in his warm embrace.

"Maybe I will, someday," she teased. Riley smiled sweetly at Gabriel. She was thinking about how he'd admitted to loving kissing her, but she couldn't tell him she knew. Otherwise, he might start making out with her again, and she wasn't sure she'd be able to stop him. It wasn't like her opinions varied from his.

He gave a very slight shove to her shoulder in fake annoyance. He turned from Riley to turn on the tub water. "I can't believe I'm helping you when you're being so mean," he gave her a mock glare and helped her scoot forward to run her ankles and hands under the cool water. "I tell you what, you are lucky to have me."

She simply replied, "I know." The words were sincerely spoken, which Gabriel confirmed when he looked her in the eyes. They actually were quite close again, and so Gabriel hung an arm around her as Riley finished rinsing her ankles. It was almost like a hug, but not quite. It felt more like he was holding her.

Gabriel left her side to get a towel to put on the bed. He came back to the tub and, careful to avoid her affected limbs, picked her up fireman style. One of Riley's elbow was hooked around his shoulders, and he lifted her up with ease. He could tell she was about to speak up, so he twisted his head so that it was a few inches from hers as they moved out of the bathroom.

Her breath had caught in her throat, and she struggled to remember what she was going to say. "Is this necessary?" she breathed against his mouth. They weren't quite that close to each other, but her warm breath still washed over his cheek anyhow.

"I'm not sure if the rubbing alcohol stopped the spread of the oils completely. They might have washed down to the bottom of your feet, and I don't want you to track the stuff all over the floor," he quietly replied, unnerved by her nearness. _God, she was beautiful._

He sent her gently down against the propped up pillows and on top of the strategically placed towel. Before letting her go, she reached up to give him a gentle kiss on the cheek. He tightened his grip on her inadvertently. "What was that for?"

"For being sweet to me. You're a really great partner, you know that?" She was looking at him with admiration, giving up the pretense that she didn't love his close presence.

It was taking a lot of effort on his part not to kiss her back roughly, so he settled for a lingering peck to the side of her mouth. "I'd like to return that sentiment."

"I'm glad we agree."

"Good." A sudden brilliant thought crossed his mind. "Now, I hate to tell you this, but I think the medic I asked for is going to be here soon, so I'm going to have to go open the door." He saw her smile lessen just a fraction as he finally released his tight grip on her and instead sat next to her on the bed. "And, we're going to have to remember that we're expected to be married, so you might have to hold my hand again."

Gabriel could've sworn he saw her eyes darken, and her smile had fully returned. "I guess I'll have to live with it." She lifted off the pillows and sat straighter up, which lessened the difference between them greatly. "Do what you have to do, I'll survive."

He caught a glimpse of merriment in her green depths and returned it. He glanced out the window when some movement caught his attention, and saw that the ambulance was pulling up with a singular medic. Riley was still in his personal space though, so he turned his attention back to her while waiting for the medic to approach the door.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He placed a hand on her cheek. At her small nod, Gabriel moved his hand into her soft brown locks and brought her eyes up to his. "Are you ready to play it up, _Mrs. Vaughn_?"

If it was possible, her pupils dilated even further.

"Let's do this," her husky voice replied. He wasn't sure if she was referring to pretending to be his wife or the fact that she couldn't tear her eyes away from his. Gabriel wasn't surprised that he found himself leaning forwards.

Riley met him halfway, resting her forehead against his. Gabriel leaned impossibly closer and whispered against her mouth, "Gotta practice, right?"

"Right," she answered, enjoying the way he didn't wait before pushing past her lips. It hadn't been barely an hour since they'd last been this close, but she found herself missing his touch. His hand, still tangled in her curls, tilted her head so that Gabriel could take the kiss deeper.

Preoccupied with the things Gabriel was doing to her mouth, Riley started moving her hands up to bring him closer. He dropped his hands from her hair, ready for the movement and pinned her forearms against the headboard of the bed so that she wouldn't spread the poisonous oils onto his skin. He followed her with his mouth when she came to rest back down against the propped pillows.

Riley's heart rate was sky-rocketing. The way her arms were pinned up was somehow making the kiss unbelievably hotter. Gabriel could do anything he wished with her at this point, and she had little power to stop him.

Not that she wanted to. Not even a little.

He didn't want to stop either apparently, because he wasn't even close to moving from her by the time they heard a knock on the door. Riley wasn't making it easy to leave anyway; she'd captured his upper lip and was running her tongue over it, crushing his resolve to get up. However, he didn't want her to be feeling the effects of the poison later, so he slowed the kiss as much as he could and spoke against her mouth.

"Good practice, darling." His voice sounded a bit strangled, but he couldn't deny how glad he was for the reason behind it. He lingered in their personal bubble until another knock sounded. Her eyes were dark and sparkling. Why did their perfect moments always get interrupted?

"Same to you, honey," she said nonchalantly, but bit her lip. When chalked up to the excuse of protecting their cover stories, she had a much easier time kissing him. Not that they really had an audience at the moment, but she felt less hindered anyway. _And good god, was it worth it._

Gabriel extracted himself from her and let her arms down. "We'll continue later, eh?" he remarked with a wink at her.

She didn't reply but wordlessly watched him move out of the room. It seemed like the same old Gabriel, but something was different about him. His steps were lighter and his whole demeanor had changed in general. Maybe he was as greatly affected by her kisses as she was by him. What a love story.

Riley's smile tightened. She had to stop thinking this was love. Didn't she? He'd said things were going to return to normal when they went back home, so her feelings were just setting her up to fail in the end. She was pretty sure it was a one-sided affair.

Right? Unless…

Nah.

She put the thoughts out of her mind when Gabriel brought the medic into the bedroom. She didn't, however, keep the smile erupting across her face at the sight of her would-be husband. Sometimes, when she looked at Gabriel, she was taken aback by how handsome he was when he was trying to be heroic. Really, he was nice to look at all the time, but when he was protecting her and showed concern for her, his features seemed to become enhanced automatically.

Riley tore her smoldering gaze away her partner and greeted the other man. The medic came around and asked how she was feeling, where she got affected, and what they had done to treat her. He was astounded that the couple treated the affliction as well as they did. "That's actually really great news. Because you removed the oils quickly, they won't have had as much time to set into your skin. It looks as if your hands and ankles are only just starting to turn red, and I'd say that you'll be better by tomorrow evening."

"Really, doc? That's great news," Gabriel smiled, relieved. He squeezed Riley's shoulder and kissed her on the forehead. He received a warm and proud smile from her.

"Yeah, you cleaned her thoroughly, and it would have been a lot worse had you not acted so quickly. I'm going to give you some calamine lotion and instruct you to take some Benadryl. You'll heal very quickly. You're lucky to have such a caring husband," the medic added, handing them the antihistamine and ointment.

"Don't I know it," Riley gazed up thankfully at Gabriel. He saw her move her head in a quick jerk, indicating that she wanted him to lean down to her. He did so and received a quick peck on the lips, spreading awareness all throughout him for the umpteenth time that day.

Gabriel walked the medic out the door, then went into the kitchen to get a drink and start boiling some water on the stove. He went back to the bedroom and was going to hand Riley a glass of water when he realized her hands were covered in calamine. He met Riley's eyes with a bit of humor.

"You know, I meant it when I said I was lucky to have you. I wanted to let you know that I appreciated everything you did for me today," she said somewhat shyly, finishing putting the lotion on her legs. Riley had no idea what was causing this sudden confidence burst that let her speak her feelings, but she wanted it to stop.

"Riley, you know I'd do anything for you. What are partners for?" He smiled and kneeled down next to the bed, grabbing a pill from the box she was given. He brought it up to her lips, unprepared for the shock he received when Riley's lips brushed his fingers, bringing the pill into her mouth. He held the water glass up for her, and watched her throat work as she swallowed.

He gulped right along with her and tried to get himself under control. "By the way, I'm making you mac n' cheese for dinner again. Are you good with that?"

Riley nodded vigorously. "Of course - that's my new favorite meal, you know. You're the best husband a girl could ask for!" She laughed when she added the last part.

"Oh, thank you, my lovely wife!" Gabriel joked right along with her. He was glad to see her smiling and alert even though she was stuck in bed. He was cheered up when she called him her husband, and wasn't prepared for how much he found that he loved when she said that.

He disappeared into the kitchen for a moment, waiting for everything to finish cooking. When he returned, Riley was pouting and staring angrily at the remote, so he dutifully picked it up for her and turned it to the channel she wanted.

Riley gave him a smile in return and sighed contentedly. She was trying not let out a laugh, realizing that Gabriel was certain to be her slave for the next day or so. This could be very fun, she decided. She couldn't move much, so it gave her the opportunity to get back at him for teasing her the whole morning.

A few minutes later, he left to retrieve her a very appetizing bowl of mac n' cheese. Her eyes widened and she stretched her hands out to receive the bowl, taking her hands back a minute later when they both ended up staring at her pink hands. Gabriel broke the silence with a laugh as she scowled.

"No way. I'm not letting you hand feed me. It's not happening." She voiced her protests louder as he sat down on the other side of the bed next to her and smirked all the while.

"How else are you going to get a bite of this delicious food?" he asked, waving a heaping spoonful in front of her face. She huffed at him, but opened her mouth to receive the food. She swallowed with conflicting emotions shown on her face - she wanted to hate Gabriel, but his macaroni was delicious.

"This is the best day ever," he remarked.

"Shut up."

"Make me."

She avoided looking at him and just accepted the food she was given by the spoonful with shame. "This is so unfair."

Gabriel pointed at her shirt. "I think you dropped something." He was barely holding it together.

She looked down, scanning the shirt for anything that may have escaped her mouth. She couldn't find anything on her, so she asked, "What?"

"Your dignity," he burst out laughing. He chuckled even as she hit him hard in the arm with her elbow. He knew he was being mean, but he couldn't help tease her. It wasn't in his nature to give up on something that made him happy.

"Don't be such a jerk," she grumbled. Soon, a small grin was threatening to spread on her face, and she found herself giggling at the joke. "Just give me my food."

"Is that anyway to treat your husband?"

"I can treat him anyway I want. He's not going anywhere."

"How do you know?" Gabriel mock-threatened. "You're not accepting my help very nicely right now."

"Oh you won't leave – you're bound to me by marriage. Besides, we've been married too long for you to divorce me now," she countered.

"Couples who have been together for a long while divorce all the time," Gabriel pointed out.

"Yeah, but who would love you like your wife does?" Riley winked. Heavy sarcasm had been present when she said it so that it was clear that she was only joking. She wasn't admitting to anything.

Gabriel had his own bout of butterflies when she said it, but decided to ignore it for fear of admitting something himself. "Well that's good, because then you'll still love me even when I steal your food."

"Seriously?_ Every time _I have food?" She wished she could have stopped him as he brought a scoop of the macaroni up to his mouth. It was infuriating that he tried to eat everything she did. He set the bowl out of her reach and onto the nightstand nearest him so that it wouldn't be grabbed out of his hands.

"Mhm, that's good stuff." His mouth was full of the stuff and he licked his lips loudly just to annoy her. Peering into the bowl, he announced, "Oh, look at that. There's only one spoonful left."

Riley'd had it. She was careful to keep her hands from directly contacting his skin and launched herself at him, effectively pinning him against the bed. She whispered fiercely to him. "You are _not_ going to steal the last bite."

His eyes were dark and he was smirking up at her. "Oh yeah? What's going to stop me?" Gabriel glanced at her lips, hovering closely above his face, and made sure she couldn't lift up by wrapping his arms around her. "I'll gladly make a trade."

When she toppled him over, the towel had followed, wrapping around her legs, and it was keeping the lotion on her legs from getting on his. Her forearms were resting on either side of Gabriel's shoulders and she wasn't exactly hating the pressure from his arms, which was bringing their lower extremities inextricably closer than they'd originally been. She knew it hadn't been on purpose, but that didn't make laying on top of him any less enjoyable. She formulated a quick plan that involved escaping his clutches and getting the last bite. Not surprisingly, it was going to involve a lot of teasing.

"If you give me the last bite," Riley started seductively, "I'll tell you what you said in your sleep." She watched him open his mouth and close it, apparently mulling over her words. Finally, he nodded and released one of his arms from around her to reach the spoon nearby.

He brought it up to her mouth. Just as she had reached it, he cruelly pulled away his hand, saying, "Yeah, like I'm going to fall for that old trick."

"Wait! Come on, I promise." Riley looked sincerely into his eyes and gave him a pout. "You don't trust the woman lying on top of you?"

"Exactly," he stated weakly, tearing his eyes away from the sexy pout. "But I'll relent this once. You better hold up your end of the deal, Riley."

"I will," she insisted. Finally, the spoon was brought closer and she savored the last bite. If this had been some sort of evil plan all along just to get her on top of him, she was going to pitch a fit. However, a deal was a deal, so she sighed and asked, "You sure you're ready for the truth now?"

He nodded firmly. He was trying not to react to the way she grinned saucily at him, feeling her laughter through his own chest.

"You told me how much you loved making out with me," Riley said after her laughing and making him wait a long moment. As soon as the truth was out of her mouth, Gabriel raised his brows in surprise, and if he was honest, with a bit of self-loathing. This wasn't something under his control. How could he ever trust himself when he was asleep now?

Thankfully, it hadn't been a bigger admission than that. He covered his face with his hands in embarrassment, only half-ashamed that he'd let the "big" secret get out. She had to know by now that he had an inkling of a crush on her. Except to him, it wasn't just an inkling anymore.

"How do you know I was telling the truth? You never know, I could have been sleep-lying." he said when he removed his hands to look at her again.

"Were you?" she asked him knowingly, watching him closely as he sighed in defeat and looked firmly into her eyes.

He shrugged his shoulders. "No."

And with that, Gabriel put a hand through her hair again, brought her head down an extra inch, and kissed her soundly.

**A/N: Thanks to diana_of_wales for everything! You make my words make sense, and I appreciate everything you do.**

**Not sure when I'll get a chance to update, but enjoy this quicker update while you can. Anyone else excited for the new episode soon?**


	10. Chapter 10 - Payback

**A/N: The season was over too quick! I hope we can all raise-awareness about this show so it gets renewed. Don't worry – I'll keep writing fanfiction about this show until it comes back. Here's a short little chapter for your reading pleasure. Thank you guys so much for your reviews – I've gotten some of the sweetest responses from last chapter, and I love you all for them.**

**Disclaimer: I made a wish that these characters were mine, but my fairy godmother wasn't around to hear it.**

**Rated: T**

**Chapter Ten - Payback**

Gabriel finally claimed those lips he'd been dreaming about since the morning. Sure, they'd kissed a few times already that day, but that was always under the pretense of cover. Much like when they'd woken up after sunrise that day, one partner was on top of the other in the bed, lips relaxing against each other.

Riley was leaning over him, trapped between his mouth and his hand in her hair. She told herself she couldn't move because she couldn't exactly use her hands or feet, but knew it wasn't quite true. Really, she could've extracted herself if she wanted to, but she figured it was best to just let Gabriel keep going. No good reason to stop him – she could wait to yell at him after.

Gabriel found the situation to be quite compromising as Riley was laying on top of him, her mouth fused to his. At first, she'd stiffened when his hand had brought her down. After a moment, she gave in when he stopped punishing her with his mouth and started really kissing her, too. All her soft curves were pushing up against his hard ones, and he tried with great effort not to groan. She fitted too perfectly into his arms, and he was loving every minute of it.

When she lifted her head a few minutes later than she'd originally planned to let the kiss go, they were both breathing a bit harder. Riley swallowed, trying to remember why she was mad with him. Why did he always have to go and distract her?

"What was that for?" she asked, trying to sound more confident than she felt. Riley was hyper-aware of every movement Gabriel made now because there was zero space between them. She felt him shift uncomfortably for a few seconds before daring to smirk at her once more.

"My mouth slipped," he breathed out. He had no good excuse other than the fact that she looked incredibly kissable when she'd been hovering over him.

"So your hand did too, then?" she accused, giving a nudge to the appendage in question. His hand slipped out of her hair slowly, teasing the ends of her hair as he did so. She repressed a shiver and held her suspicious look.

A knowing smile returned her glare, though. He tilted his head and raised his eyebrows at her. "You're one to talk, Riley."

"What do you mean?" She squinted at him for a second and realized where her hands were. She swore at her lotion-covered hands that had somehow ended up gripping his shoulders and staining his shirt.

"Not a word," she commanded with a glare.

"I didn't say anything," Gabriel chimed. He did help her sit up, though, making sure her legs were still wrapped safely in the towel so the lotion didn't smear all over the blankets.

Riley inhaled sharply when Gabriel started taking off his shirt. She let her eyes wander south for a moment before his teasing eyes grabbed her attention again. His partner had been eyeing him not only appreciatively, but a little warily. "Relax. I just need to change my shirt," he stated.

An odd look suddenly crossed her face as Gabriel turned away from her, but he brushed it off and briefly left the bed to soak his shirt in the sink. The laundry room in the lodge was closed by now, so he figured a quick soak of the fabric would suffice to clean it. When he returned to grab another shirt, he noticed the uncomfortable frown still on his partner's face. Instantly, he knew something was bothering her, and it wasn't the kiss. She had a special glare reserved for Gabriel whenever she had a problem with him, and this look was not the same.

He would bet anything that she was starting to feel the effects of the poison ivy, and instantly felt a pang of sympathy. He hated to see her sick – not because it made her weak, but because he knew she couldn't do anything about it and it made her feel vulnerable. He racked his brain for something that might cheer her up.

He disappeared to the kitchen in a flash and came back holding something behind his back. Riley was sitting glumly in the same spot he'd left her, only he could see that her eyes were shining and that she wasn't feeling very good. Her pink-coated hands were clenched, and Gabriel guessed she was trying hard not scratch her skin. _It must feel awful, _Gabriel thought.

Riley didn't try to cover up her apprehension as her partner came around and sat on the side of the bed next to her, wearing a soft smile meant to placate her. "How are you feeling?"

"Uncomfortable in my own skin," she started. Gabriel hated the way her voice broke. "When you went into the bathroom I just started to get this weird feeling in my legs, and then my arms. It only just started, but the itchiness is already becoming slightly unbearable."

She was biting her lip now, and he could tell that she was getting increasingly upset the more she tried to ignore her affliction. With a tranquil voice, he tried to calm her down. "Your medicine just hasn't set it yet. I know you're trying to resist scratching, and that's the right thing to do - you don't want scars." He waited until she nodded. "But that's why I brought you something to help."

A flicker of hope crossed her features as he brought the oven mitts out from behind his back. A quiet laugh escaped her lips as he slipped them over her hands. Using one newly mitt-covered hand, Riley tried to discreetly wipe at the corner of her eye. Gabriel caught the movement, though. Thinking of nothing better he could do, he pulled her as gently as he could into a hug.

She was surprised at first, but accepted it gratefully as he lingered. "Thanks, Gabriel." Riley said it earnestly when she sat back, and she was extremely grateful that he knew how to make her feel better.

"You looked like you needed it," he replied quietly. He was overcome with the strangest feeling of protectiveness over her. It made no sense; she was hired to protect _him_, for Pete's sake. But who was _her_ protector? As Riley's partner, he wanted – no, _needed_ to take over that role.

Gabriel released her and moved around to sit on his side of the bed. "It's been a long day, and I think it'd help if you got some sleep and drank some more water." He waited until she rolled her eyes and picked up the glass on her nightstand. "There you go."

"Yes, Mom," she mocked. Secretly, she felt a twinge of appreciation for his concern over her well-being. At least she could scratch her skin without worrying about scarring it now. She couldn't ask for a better person to help her get through the day, she supposed. Once the glass was downed, she tilted her head towards him. "Happy?"

"Very," Gabriel beamed. "Now, I have to ask you something. Would you mind if I stayed in the room tonight, just to make it easier for me to help you if you need anything?"

She crossed her arms. "Do I have any choice in the matter?"

"No."

Riley rolled her eyes. "Then why did you ask?"

"Out of politeness," he shrugged.

"That makes no sense."

"Doesn't have to," he scoffed. "Are the meds helping at all yet?"

Riley considered the question for a moment. "I think they're just keeping the itching tolerable at this point. I hope I can just sleep it off." Adjusting her blankets overtop of her legs so that her ankles stuck out, she nestled down on her pillows, facing Gabriel.

He turned off the television and did the same, shutting off the light so that the room was lit only by moonlight.

He and his partner both lay on the bed, silent, listening to the sound of a few owls calling to each other in the woods. The location of the cabin was really quite serene and calming. Never had Gabriel been out in the woods for so long, excepting when he was on the occasional mission. He didn't usually get to take time for himself, much less have a few days to relax and just appreciate the nature that was surrounding them as it was now. The night sounds were lulling him to the point where he could easily fall asleep at any moment. However, something else was keeping him up.

That something else was the sound of his partner's breathing. He would have thought that she'd be falling asleep quicker, as she was much more tired than he was and the Benadryl she took was supposed to cause extreme drowsiness. He couldn't see her face in the dim light filtering through the windows, but saw the steady rise and fall of the silhouette of her chest.

"Riley?" he whispered. She didn't answer at first, so he called her name again.

"Hmm?" she answered. He could hear that her voice was, in fact, laced with sleepiness. How was she staying awake?

"Why can't you fall asleep?" He'd asked the question in a slightly louder tone than before, shattering the silence of the room and waking himself up a bit more in the process. Riley turned away from him to stare up at the ceiling.

"I don't know," she sighed. "My mind just feels like it's racing, you know?" Riley's mind was whirring as it had been for the past few days, and she needed a way to just shut out all of the thoughts threatening to consume her. Especially the voices that were warning her of willingly allowing Gabriel to sleep next to her so often.

"Well, you'll just have to distract yourself," he said rather breezily. He didn't pry and try to guess what was bothering her, knowing she already had a lot on her plate. "Riley, what's your favorite color?"

"My what?" She rolled on her side back towards him and realized he was trying to distract her. "Um, green?"

"Like the color of your eyes," he remarked softly. "Where did you grow up?"

Riley gave him a hard stare, even though Gabriel couldn't see her. For a second, all she could think about was that he'd noticed her eyes, but she quickly got a grip. "Gabriel, you already know all about me from the chip. I appreciate your trying to distract me, but it's not doing any good when I know that you already know all the answers."

"I don't know _all_ the answers," he insisted, "but fine. I'll ask about stuff I don't already know." He hesitated, though, and tapped a finger on his chin.

"Gabriel!" Riley's eyes widened and she swatted him with her mitt. "Stop what you're doing right now. I know you're searching my entire file and trying to see what you don't know," she paused, shuttering, "…as if that doesn't already make me uncomfortable enough…"

"Ow," Gabriel muttered, rubbing his arm where she'd smacked him. He was hoping he hadn't let on to what he was doing with the chip, but supposed Riley was right about one thing. "That's sort of true. There's not much I don't already know. But I still have questions. For example, why in the world did you go out with that guy in college? You know, the guy you sent that email to with the picture of you-"

That was as far as he got before Riley clubbed him in the shoulder again forcefully and practically shouted at him. "Stop looking at the picture, Gabriel!"

He could see the silhouette of Riley rolling over and completely facing away from him in embarrassment.

"What? It's a lovely picture. I only looked at it the one time, and that was way back when we first met," Gabriel explained. It was a true statement, but he knew he'd never be able to get the memory of the picture out of his head no matter how badly Riley wanted him to forget it. "Come on, don't be mad. You already knew I'd seen it before – I even outright told you."

She was silent though, save for a low answering growl, so he reached over to grasp her waist and turn her over to face him again. She was somewhat closer, but he didn't dare invade her space for the time being. The whole point of this was to distract her from her worrisome thoughts, not provoke them further. He settled for keeping a hand on her forearm so that she wouldn't turn from him again.

"It's still embarrassing. Do you even know what it's like to have someone know every detail about you and you know next to nothing about them? Not that I want to invade your privacy at all, I just would've liked to have the chance to tell you something about myself that you can't already figure out." She had told him all I one breath, and he couldn't blame her for her frustration.

"Well, if it's any consolation, I'll try and be a bit more open myself. You can ask me just about anything, if you want," he suggested. He hoped she'd be delicate, though. He didn't exactly like talking about his past, but he wanted to earn her trust so that she felt more comfortable around him. They were partners, after all. Trust was key in their relationship.

Riley nodded and pretended to be in deep thought. From where she was on the bed, facing away from the moonlight, she could just about make out a worrisome expression on Gabriel's face. Her ears picked up a quiet swallow, and she had to keep from laughing because she knew exactly what she was doing to him.

Gabriel felt her pulse leap for a moment and guessed she had reached a conclusion. She finally let out the laugh she was concealing and asked, "What's your favorite color?"

His whole body seemed to deflate and he let out a breath that he didn't know he'd been holding. A smile tugged at his lips when he answered, "Blue."

"Like the color of your eyes," Riley replied in a voice that mimicked his earlier one. She continued to ask him simple questions along this line, like his favorite song, favorite animal, etc. In asking him questions, Riley realized that she knew quite a bit about Gabriel already and had picked up on a lot in their time working together. All too soon, she ran out of questions for him.

She lay silent next to Gabriel, taking comfort in the warm fingers wrapped gently around her forearm where the mitt ended. Neither of them really noticed when his fingertips gained a mind of their own and started skimming over her, tracing patterns from her elbow and back down again. She felt her eyelids go heavy, her brain starting to get foggy.

"I see you're finally getting tired there, partner. Feeling good?" he whispered. He relaxed immensely because her breathing slowed and she'd stopped talking, unintentionally letting Gabriel know that he'd finally calmed her.

The low hum of Gabriel's voice was soothing her to sleep further, though she couldn't really focus on what he was saying. She was losing consciousness, so her mouth took over for her brain, which was on the brink of exhaustion.

"Never better," she mumbled. She seemed pretty coherent still, but her appearance suggested otherwise. He smiled at her answer anyways, though, appreciating the fact that she still remembered their inside joke.

"Are you awake?"

"Yes," she answered, though Gabriel could tell she was close to slurring her words.

He leaned over and whispered in her ear to check, saying, "Where are we Riley?"

"In your apartment," she scoffed. This close, he could tell that her eyes were shut. At least he confirmed that Riley wasn't quite awake, but why was she dreaming they were in Gabriel's apartment?

"What are we doing?" he asked.

"I dunno. On couch," was all Gabriel could make out. What were they doing on the couch? It was very important that he figure this out now. He tensed though, when she added, "Chris is here."

He prompted her to answer his earlier question further, and when she took a deep breath, he almost thought she'd woken up. After a long moment, she spoke up again. "Trying to sleep. Why?"

"Just wondering." Gabriel took a deep breath as well. He grinned then and had an idea. Time for payback.

"So, you dream about me a lot?" he started, and saw her nod her head. "Admit it, Riley. You like kissing me as much as I like kissing you."

"I don't like kissing you," was all he heard next.

An oddly cold feeling came over him, and he leaned away from her ear and back down on his own pillow.

He shouldn't have felt sad. Really, he shouldn't have. It was his own fault for trying to mess with her in her sleep. If he didn't want to know her true feelings, he really shouldn't have asked her about them.

He rolled away, facing the other side of the room so that he wasn't forced to watch the beauty lying next to him fall asleep. He laid there, fidgeting. Supposedly people told the truth much easier when they sleep-talked. But…he really, _really_ wanted Riley to be lying.

Maybe he shouldn't go off of what she'd said. After all, maybe she wasn't quite in her right mind. The thoughts turned in his head, confusing him because he couldn't decide if her words were true or not.

He was aware that the cabin was silent again, and the owls had stopped making their calls. Riley started making sounds under her breath, almost like she was trying to speak to him again. Gabriel was going to ignore her, but he heard his name being mumbled and reluctantly turned back to her.

"Not you," she was saying. "I don't like you, I like _him_." Gabriel frowned again and rolled right back over with a scowl on his face.

It made matters worse when he felt Riley come closer to him, cozying up against him and burying her face into his back. She was still muttering nonsense, to his displeasure, but he couldn't bring himself to move away from the sudden warmth spreading all over from where she was pressed against him.

"Gabriel," she called, muffling her words against his shirt.

"What?" he ground out.

"Make Chris go away," she muttered.

He waited a beat. "Why?"

"He keeps asking me if I like him."

Gabriel froze. _Wait, so…if she thought she had been talking to Chris…_

"What did you tell him?" Gabriel stammered.

"That I liked you instead, obviously," she scoffed. She buried her nose further into his shoulder blade and tucked her hands between their bodies, held tightly against her chest.

He was still frozen, eyes wide with shock. He knew he was the one who was going to have a hard time calming his mind now. Gabriel didn't know what to do with himself, and he felt like Riley really wouldn't have liked it if she knew what she was saying.

Gabriel tried hard to brush it off and just go to sleep. Anyone could like him instead of Chris; it was easy to hate that pompous, self-absorbed jerk. As desperately as he tried to convince himself that the comment really didn't mean much, he still was filled with unsteadiness at his partner's admission.

It was a pleasant kind of unsteadiness, though, and it left him falling asleep with a smile on his face.

**A/N: SUPER sorry this chapter is posting super late. I had a tough couple days last week and I tried to write, but it seems I could only produce this short chapter. I hope you beautiful readers aren't too disappointed, but I'll hopefully be able to write more next weekend. **

**Also, an incredibly nice guest reviewer pointed out to me that Riley's eyes are actually green, and I'd like to apologize on behalf of my entire existence for that. I always hate it when authors get that stuff wrong. Thank you so much, dear! I fixed it ASAP. **

**Thank you, diana_of_wales for your support of my story. I really hope you're having a better week too and that you're having some good luck. :D**


	11. Chapter 11 - Competitions

**A/N: Hey! So there seems to be some confusion about who Chris is. Back in Chapter 5, I introduced him as Chris Pellegrino, a pompous annoying hiker dude. He is neither Chris Jameson nor Charles Griffin. I totally made him up! And it was by accident that he has the same name as those guys…I wrote that before I even realized the names of actual characters from the show. Sorry about that, but I hope this clears that up! Enjoy this next Chapter without confusion. :D**

**Rated: T **

**Disclaimer: I should own them, shouldn't I? That way Gabriel and Riley would kiss in the show a WHOLE TON MORE. But I don't own them…yet.**

**Chapter 11 – Competitions**

By the time Riley woke up, she'd found that Gabriel had already left the bed. She'd also forgotten the mitts were still on her hands when she tried to rub her eyes, and grumbled in frustration. The bathroom door was open a crack, and she could hear the sounds of her partner in the shower.

Glancing over at the clock, she realized that for once she'd slept in past six o'clock. It must have been the medication she'd taken – that Benadryl had knocked her out cold once she finally fell asleep. Riley vaguely remembered talking to Gabriel as she was drifting off, but didn't have the faintest clue about what they'd discussed.

She laid under the blanket, desperately trying to shake off the drowsiness from the allergy medication until Gabriel walked out fully dressed for the day. Strangely, a few warm butterflies erupted in her stomach at the sight of him. His damp hair clung to his forehead and his freshly shaven face was dimpled with a smile that did funny things to her heart. What in the hell was happening to her?

"About time you woke up," he started. "How's the poison ivy?" As he asked her, he came around the bed to sit by her side.

It took her a few moments to find her voice. With a clear of her throat, she answered, "Seems to be much better. It's not as bad as last night."

At her mention of last night, Gabriel's face twitched into a smile, but it was gone in an instant. She would have asked him about it had he not interrupted first. "Want to clean up, then?"

"What do you mean?" She raised her eyebrows in question. Her pulse spiked when he reached for her arms, gently removing the mitts and showing off the pink calamine lotion that was still coating her skin. "Oh," she mouthed.

"Ready?" he asked needlessly before scooping her up in his arms again. She wasn't ready for the quick movement and held tightly to him with her elbow hooked around his neck. Gabriel was so close that she smelled his aftershave, and Riley suppressed the urge to run her fingers over his newly stubble-free jaw. Honestly, she couldn't wait for the moment she was allowed to use her hands again.

Not that she was going to use the opportunity to run her hands all over Gabriel. No, of course not.

Gabriel set her down gently on the bathroom rug, but didn't make a move to leave the room immediately. He turned on the bath faucet for her so that she didn't have to fumble with it. Then, Gabriel turned back to her with a grin that looked like he wasn't telling her something.

"What is it?" Riley asked. She knew nothing good could come from his look, and watched him warily as Gabriel came back closer to her and set his hands on her shoulders bracingly.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm going to have to take off your clothes, now," he stated, concealing a smile.

She backed up until she hit the sink, making sure she was out of his reach. "Excuse me? You're doing _what _now?"

He sighed as though she was overreacting. "I said not to take it the wrong way. Your hands are still pink, and you'll stain your clothes if you try to take them off yourself. See my shirt in the sink? It's still stained from last night, even though I've been soaking it ever since."

She turned around to see the shirt, which was indeed still soaking in the sink. In the mirror she saw Gabriel come up behind her with an innocent expression on his face. It contrasted with her accusing glare, so she whipped around to face him again, seeing he'd moved infinitesimally closer.

_So he was going to remove her clothing. How bad could that be?_ She asked herself. Besides, she really didn't want her nice shirt to get stained. Truthfully, the action seemed to be necessary.

Damn it. She couldn't believe she was going to allow him to do this. Begrudgingly, she answered, "Fine. But you better be-"

"_Professional_, I get it." Gabriel, internally, was actually shocked she would let him do it. "Shall I remove your shorts first?" He had a gleam in his eye, a dangerous spark. It was all he could do not to grin victoriously.

"Let's just get this over with," she huffed, her face turning a beautiful shade of pink as he brought his hands to the button on her shorts and unzipped the front.

She tried desperately to avoid his gaze, because she knew that if she did look at him, that electric spark of sexual tension would erupt in the air between them again. What his hands were doing already had her chest doing that funny flutter again, and she was hoping the pink on her face wasn't turning any shades deeper.

Gabriel hooked his thumbs on the waistline of her shorts, accidentally skimming the skin on her hips as he brought the piece of clothing down so that she could step out of her shorts. She swore that she heard a quiet intake of breath as her black panties were revealed.

She tried to just wait through the embarrassment, but Gabriel was taking his sweet time. "Could you please hurry up, already?" she pleaded.

There was that endearing smirk.

"Didn't know you were so desperate for me to remove your clothing, Riley." He'd whispered her name in an unintentionally sexy way, and she took a deep breath of her own. But then, she realized what he'd implied, and threw in an eye roll for good measure.

It didn't matter how true his statement was.

"You know what I meant," she said weakly. He was enjoying this too much, just as she'd predicted he would.

"As you wish," he grinned. "Arms up, please."

She raised her arms as Gabriel grabbed a hold of the fabric of her shirt, pushing it up as slowly as he deemed necessary. The feel of his warm hands grazing at her sides was getting to be too much, and she finally glared at him as her shirt was finally removed to reveal a matching black bra.

Bad idea. His eyes were staring intensely back at her, darker than she'd ever seen them. She let out a sigh of her own this time, damning the fact that he could undo her so easily as of late. His hand came up to brush a fallen lock of hair off of her shoulder, but the small touch spurred the butterflies in her stomach all over again.

He glanced down at her half-naked form with a hint of admiration. She noticed and through the hitch in her voice, warned him, "Turn around, or something."

His eyes sparkled with mirth. "I told you before, I've already seen you in a swimsuit, and this isn't any different. Unless, of course," he paused to give her a quick once-over, "you wanted me to help you out of _all_ your clothing."

"Of course not." She swallowed and shook her head, trying her hardest to say it in a steady voice. Riley noticed how his own voice had turned gravelly as well. This was worse than their close proximity in bed, she was sure of it. Here she was standing nearly naked in front of him, the steamy shower less than an arm's length away. Riley had to get away from Gabriel soon, or she might regret it.

"Alright, now get out so I can shower," she said lightly, trying to head towards the tub. She turned back towards him, though, when she didn't hear his retreating footsteps.

Gabriel guiltily looked back up from where his eyes had been resting. "What?"

"Earth to Gabriel, I'm not getting in the shower until I know you've left," she rolled her eyes.

He just cocked his head to the side. "Are you really getting in there still half-clothed?"

She scoffed and put a hand on her hip. "You know, I think I'm going to. I'm certainly not letting you undress me completely. I don't even care about this underwear getting wet."

He was silent for a half a second before he burst out in laughter, making her blush anew. "Dammit Gabriel, you know I didn't mean to say that. Now _get out_!" She picked up a bottle of shampoo from nearby and threw it at him.

To annoy her further, Gabriel caught the bottle and cheekily added, "Just let me know if you need help in there."

"Gee, thanks," she glowered.

"Anytime. I'm always happy to take you clothes off," he said winking, taking one last sigh at the sight of her bare skin, and closed the door to the bathroom before she could come back with a retort.

She wanted to scream at him. But, at the same time, she hoped he never stopped looking at her like he just had. That was the most frustrating part. The way he undressed her, both literally and with his eyes, would be haunting her dreams for a long time.

After ten minutes of a hot shower, Riley dressed herself and padded out to the living room to see if she could find Gabriel. She was unbelievably glad to have the sticky cream off of her hands, free to move around easily again. Her afflictions had still been slightly itchy when she left the shower, but she decided to take another allergy pill instead of smearing the cream on herself again. Anything was better than having Gabriel do everything for her, like feed her, carry her, and undress her.

Well, okay, so they were _some_ perks to the calamine. But she was really more of a do-it-yourself kind of girl.

Riley found him pacing in front of one of the windows, hanging up his phone from a call to headquarters. She could tell Lillian was on the other end by the way Gabriel was standing formally, as if he was a soldier receiving orders. Riley also assumed he was only checking in with their boss, as he didn't immediately alert her to any news as she approached.

"Still itchy?" he asked. He almost looked disappointed to see her fully clothed again, if his sullen glance at her clothes was anything to go by.

"Not really. I think I'll be okay to go lotion-free today," she smiled. The pills made the itching so much more tolerable, and she hadn't felt any drowsiness set in yet.

"Good. That means we don't have to stay inside all day." He turned around to face the window again. He was unusually quiet, and Riley found it puzzling that his behavior was now so docile as compared to the way he acted when they'd shared the bathroom earlier.

Perhaps Lillian had brought back the ever-present reminder that he should keep the relationship with his partner strictly professional. _I doubt he'd follow those orders anyway_, Riley thought. Not with the way he kept touching her and kissing her like his life depended on it. Deep down, she at least _hoped_ he wouldn't follow the orders.

Gabriel's voice snapped her out of her thoughts suddenly. He was staring quizzically at her and repeated his question. "Why are you blushing?"

"W-what?" she stammered. "I'm not blushing."

"How can you even tell? I'm the one looking at you, and I'm telling you that your face is slowly getting redder. Are you feeling sick or something?" He pressed on.

"Seriously? Let it go, Gabriel," she scowled at him. Didn't he realize that the worst thing to tell a blushing person was that they were blushing? She sighed with frustration– he probably did know and was just trying to get under her skin. She definitely wouldn't put it past him.

"Or maybe you're embarrassed," he started with a slow, devilish smile. "Are you thinking about the way I undressed y-"

He was cut off by a hard jab of her fist into his arm. Unfortunately, that was how she confirmed what she was thinking about.

"You know, I'm glad the mitts are finally off so I can punch you easier," Riley hissed. Changing the subject was a lot easier than answering his question, and she wished he'd leave the matter alone. "I took meds instead of that gross lotion."

"Well," he grumbled, rubbing his sore arm, "At least you're free to harm me as much as you want. Lucky me."

Riley didn't apologize. "Anyways, I was going to go for a run. Care to join me?"

It was then that he realized she'd put on running shorts and an old sweatshirt. Apparently she really _did_ pack for everything in her emergency bag. He was glad for the suggestion because it offered a nice distraction for him, not allowing him as great an opportunity to be in terribly close contact with her. Gabriel knew he'd gone a little too far by taking off her clothes like he did, but in all honesty, she was completely irresistible when she woke up with bed head and talked to him with that low, slumber-ridden voice. And, if she was going to let him do what he wanted with her, why question that?

Of course, she could have just rinsed her hands off in the sink that his shirt had been soaking in and removed her clothes herself, but Gabriel wasn't really strong-willed enough to offer any other option to her.

He nodded in answer to her question. Gabriel was already wearing shorts, and he missed the morning runs he occasionally took. At least in his apartment, he liked to work out before heading to Cyber Com, so he figured this jog would be refreshing.

Soon they were both out the door and heading into a light jog, and Gabriel asked where she was planning to go.

"I heard that the end of this road leads to the top of the hill we're on, and I remember Chris telling me it has a nice view," she explained, not yet out of breath.

"Really? You're taking a suggestion from _him_?" he asked without hiding his disgust.

"What reason would he have to lie about a thing like that? Besides, he seems to know a lot about the outdoors," she said, smiling at Gabriel's ill-concealed tone. Even if the hiker had been arrested and taken off the campgrounds and couldn't possibly meet Riley any time soon, her partner still held onto his jealousy.

"Well, this better be worth it. I haven't gotten the chance to run since we raced to the lake," he paused, adding, "A race that I so valiantly won."

"Are you kidding me? I was right behind you. You didn't win by that much," she scoffed, not willing to accept defeat. "I'm usually faster than you, so I don't know how you managed to get ahead. I could totally beat you any other day."

He turned to give her a disbelieving look, but caught the smile she was holding. "You wanna bet?"

The agents matched their paces and they'd both started to speed up as the road got steeper. The rising sun peeked out of the low clouds and lit up the pathway they took. They ran around a bend and followed the road as it led them to a secluded part of the woods where conifers lined the shoulders of the path.

"Why not? What are the details of this bet?" Riley asked slyly, wanting to know the stakes. It was also in her competitive nature for her to immediately accept the bet, no matter the consequences.

"Whoever makes it to the top of the hill first wins, of course," he grinned charmingly.

"Yes, but _what_ do we win?" she asked impatiently. He was silent, and they both jogged on for a few moments until he spoke again.

"I don't know…bragging rights?"

"That's all?"

"Sounds like more than enough to me," he stated. "But I think its best we both start at the same time for this race."

"Yeah, to make it more fair," Riley chuckled, alluding to the notion that he wouldn't be able to catch up without a head start.

"Hey, what kind of partner are you?" Gabriel noticed she was being especially stubborn and challenging this morning. Maybe he'd got her more wound-up than he'd thought earlier. At least it meant that he was going to have fun.

"Well we better get started soon," she said as she pointed to a sign on the side of the road. It alerted them that a dead-end was near.

"Ready?" Gabriel counted down from three and both bolted forward, running nearly twice as fast as they had been.

They plowed forward at a speed they'd each trained hard to reach. It was an important acquisition for chasing suspects for Riley, and a necessary skill Gabriel needed when he was escaping the trouble he usually got himself into. Both partners were focused on their end goal, and they soon had the top of the hill in their sights. Proud of their racing talents, each glanced at the other, expecting to see themselves in the lead.

In reality, the partners were both still keeping the same pace and neither could pull ahead. For a moment they shared a look, and laughs could be heard through their huffs of breath. This early in the morning, the agents were the only ones awake, meaning that the only sounds they heard were made by themselves or the birds singing over their heads.

Just as Gabriel had expected, the challenge had turned out to be more fun than either of them expected. Both were competitive and pushed themselves their hardest to take the last few steps to the end of the road. At the last moment, Riley leaped forward and onto the grass the dirt road proceeded.

"WINNER! Yes!" she exclaimed. Her face was full of joy and pride, and she started running victory circles around Gabriel.

He was slightly bent over, trying to catch his breath. Gabriel knew she was bragging purposefully, trying to annoy him, but he couldn't help but find her utterly adorable as she bounced around with her flushed cheeks and exhilarant arms raised in the air. Rather than try to stop her, he just watched his partner fondly and shared her contagious smile. "Congratulations."

"Jealous, Gabriel? It doesn't matter, I've got the right to brag all I want, now!" Riley was still hyper but she stopped dancing around victoriously to laugh and catch her breath. "Told you I could beat you."

Gabriel put his hands up in surrender. "I'm glad I didn't bet for higher stakes. But I still think you got lucky this time." When she gave him a look, he added, "But I'm going to let that go for now so you can continue your charming victory dance." He gave her a smile that seemed to say "_you win."_

"Now, now. Don't pout. It's not attractive," she snickered and walked towards him with purpose.

Scratch that, she seemed to walk enticingly right through his bubble of personal space, meeting his eyes the entire time while skirting right under his gaze and bumping his shoulder playfully. His eyes trailed ahead of her and Gabriel finally saw what she was heading towards.

From the top of the hill, they could see even farther than the vantage point near the lodge. The whole valley lay out below them and they could see the mountains piercing the sky for hundreds of miles, the most distant ones the color of amethyst. Riley stood on a rock ledge, pulled her hair out of the ponytail it was bound in, and took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air.

"Wow," Gabriel breathed. "The view is absolutely amazing."

"I know," Riley nodded in agreement. She looked behind her shoulder to motion him over. Her heart skipped a beat when she noticed how he had actually been staring at her, not the overlook.

"Nice place to watch the sunrise," he commented. He was incredibly appreciative of the forest they were seeing this morning, but he was even happier that he got to spend this special moment with his incredibly gorgeous partner. He wasn't lying when he said he found the view amazing.

"Huh. There's a whole town on the other side of the valley," Riley said, pointing to the grouping of buildings that the sun was just reaching. "Too bad we can't really leave the campground."

When she'd said it, Gabriel pleasantly noted that her voice didn't sound the least bit regretful. They both sat down on the warm rock surface of the outlook.

"We gotta get out of the office more." Hell, they needed to get out of the _city_ more. Rare experiences like this were thing Gabriel prized, and he made a mental note to save this moment in his memory forever. They didn't get to see this type of endless wilderness when they worked. What was more alarming to him was that he never had a morning run as nice as this. Though he usually grouched at his partner when she tried to wake him up early, especially for a run, he decided he was now going to join Riley on her morning jogs. What better way to start the day than to get his blood pumping with a little friendly competition? Not to mention getting to see his partner sweaty, hair disheveled, shorts ridding up as she ran fast-

"Gabriel?" Her voice lifted him from his thoughts. When he waited, she just said, "You're staring at me. Do I have something on my face?"

A delicate hand was brought up to her cheek to wipe at a phantom mark, but Gabriel just shook his head and looked past the ledge. He hoped to hide the faint blush that had tinged his cheeks without warning. Suddenly, he was all too aware of Riley's nearness. Their hands almost brushed each other were they lay on the sun-kissed rock, but were not quite touching.

All it would take was a simple movement to cover her hand with his warm one and intertwine their fingers. He couldn't find the courage to complete the smallest act of intimacy, though, and settled for the tingle that shot up his arm when she accidentally grazed his skin with her outstretched fingers. Which, by the way, she didn't bother moving once her hand settled next to his.

Neither of them really acknowledged the touch, and they sat pleasantly watching the town below them wake up and start to bustle around. Pretty soon, however, they heard the sound of a motor vehicle puttering up the road and watched it come into view. The van was only turning around at the top of the hill, and it soon went back the way it came. The side of the van read _Pet Adoption Van_.

Riley's eyes widened and Gabriel stood up, pulling his partner along. They both shared a concerned look and left the outlook immediately to race downhill after the vehicle. This couldn't be good.

Sure enough, their fears were confirmed when they found the van near a cabin down the road, Officer Bates coming out the door with a leash on Ivy. Gabriel had a sinking feeling in his stomach and walked down in front of the dog, essentially blocking the officer's path. Unlike Ms. Bates, Ivy was ecstatic to see him and wagged her tail in excitement.

"What's going on here, Sally?" he asked while giving Ivy a good scratch behind the ears.

"Well," Bates hesitated, "Chris didn't have any family to take his dog, so we can't do anything but give her up for adoption." The officer was unusually quiet, probably sad to see the poor old dog subjected to the fate of going to the pound.

"Are you sure no one else wanted to take her?" he asked. There was no way Ivy deserved to be sent to a center where she'd most likely live the rest of her days human-less.

"I would have gladly taken her to be our lodge mascot," Sally said with a sad smile, "But we just don't have room in our budget to take care of a dog." She forced herself to look away from Gabriel's accusing eyes and started to head back towards the adoption van.

He looked over to his partner who gave him a wide-eyed look filled with meaning and a nod in the dog's direction. Gabriel followed the nod and shook his head at Riley. He mouthed _No_, but Riley gave him another pleading look and he was lost to her will.

"Hey- What…what if we took Ivy?" he asked Officer Bates without turning from Riley. The warm grin spreading across his partner's face was all the reward he needed.

Sally spun around with a similarly blossoming smile. "Really? You'd do that?" It was light a flip had been switched and her sullen attitude from moments ago was suddenly gone in a flash. "Oh, I'm so happy to hear that! I was hoping someone would grab her last minute! She really is a sweet old pup. Let me just get the appropriate papers together…" she trailed off.

Gabriel looked at both his partner and the officer in shock. Did he just get coerced into adopting a dog in a conversation that he and Riley had only shared through looks?

Once the papers were signed and Ivy was ushered into her new owner's hands, Sally waved over her shoulder at them and shared a conspiratorial look with Riley. He shook his head. "Women. You'll be the death of me."

"You can't possible think this was a bad idea," Riley protested, squatting down and matching Ivy's puppy dog eyes. "I just got you to bring this wonderful being that you love into your life, who also happens to love you for some reason, so you can't stay mad at me for that."

He looked down with a heavy heart at his two best friends. Riley got almost every part of that sentence right.

And the part that was wrong?

She'd only referred to one wonderful being that he loved being brought into his life.

**A/N: It feels like forever since I updated. Thanks for all the sweet reviews you guys left on the last chapter. You guys are wonderful, and thanks so much for being patient with me! I'd also like to announce that my story just got over 28,000 views and I'm so happy that my first story is actually as successful as it! Y'all know how to make a girl cry.**

**Also, if you haven't already, feel free to leave me some prompts for future chapters in this fic. Or maybe pop me a review and tell me I'm doing this story good?**

**Thank you, Diana_of_Wales, for all you've done. I hope you're having a better weekend than the last!**


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